It Can't Get Worse
by Zentrodie
Summary: A simple little try to replicate their high sync ratio goes bad with traditional results
1. Chapter 1

Standard Disclaimer

When ya get started into this you'll see that its not the more original concept and its been done before. But 'I' never did one before and I always wanted to so…I'm doing it for the fun factor. Hope you enjoy it too.

X-X

It Can't Get Worse

Chapter 1

Head foggy, eyes strained as they opened under that damnable soft white light of the overhead lamps at the hospital. Shinji didn't have to be told where he was, he'd been there enough to have the ceiling tiles memorized. "My favorite hospital room," he muttered and pulled at the blanket. What had done it this time, another of the great Ritsuko Akagi's patent pending mind fucks, that's what.

'We just have to have both of you in the plug again,' Shinji replayed the faux blond's words verbatim in his mind. 'You were over 200% together, we have to see if it can happen again.' While he hadn't minded the idea of being in a confined space with the lovely if not volatile German, why did it take the stupid bitch so long to have them do the test again?!

"Did I just think of Ritsuko as a stupid bitch?" the tired pilot asked aloud. He was feeling angrier than normal. But that was to be expected, two weeks ago he catches a giant falling bomb, and then he's thrown into an entry plug with a passionate girl with a superiority complex, who had her ego damaged by a certain boy who would remain spineless…nameless.

Closing her book, Rei took notice of her target waking up, "You have awakened Ikari-kun?" His eyes were open and he was muttering, but Rei wasn't one to make leaps of faith, she had no faith. Being a biologically engineered clone and being reminded of her replacability didn't give the poor child much to believe in. But she did have one annoying soft spot, a boy named Ikari Shinji came into her life and with him came a new concept, friendship. Now however that was either to be threatened or at the least changed. "If you are we have much to discuss."

Rubbing an odd film off his eyes, a silky film, Shinji crooked his head over towards the headache ensuing voice. "Ayanami-san, what are you doing here? Is it an angel?" This song and dance had played out before, him in bed with the enigmatic walking quandary meeting him when he woke up. _Why don't I feel the same way when I look at her now…last time I saw her I was all queasy like with Asuka but now…_

Setting her book down, more of a collection of rules she was forced to memorize, Rei was perplexed. Misato had instructed the girl to brief Shinji about what had occurred, while she dealt with the other half, but Rei wasn't sure how to do it. "I was ordered to brief you on the results of Akagi's test. But as I am unfamiliar with how to do so, I will just show you the result." Reaching for a small hand mirror on Shinji's nightstand, she handed it over. "As for your comment on Akagi, I would say it isn't without warrant."

As he reached out for the offering, had Shinji's mind been clearer he'd have noticed something strange. His arm was thinner, more refined and trimmed, more feminine. "Still I shouldn't call Akagi-san bad names just because I don't understand…what the…" Shinji's jaw went slack and his free hand started groping his face. "This can't be…it's a trick, special effects or a trick mirror." He was staring into the eyes of one Asuka Langley Soryu.

"I can assure you that no duplicitous intentions are at work," Rei stood up and took the mirror from Shinji's shaking hands less she hurt herself. "Magi confirmed that twenty minutes into the test pilot Soryu and your sync ratio exceeded 300% and which point the two of you screamed and passed out." From her station in Unit-00 Rei was tempted to liberate her only friend, sure it might have caused Asuka to get crushed but no big loss there. "The affects of the high level of synchronization was not learned until Pilot Soryu awoke an hour ago. His reaction was…drastic."

Three male nurses had to subdue the newly awoken boy and dope him up to considerable levels of artificial happy. Misato ordered shackles on the arms for when Asuka woke again so he wouldn't threaten to throw himself off a roof if something wasn't done and done thirty seconds ago.

Grabbing at the 'film' that just so happened to be her new cropping of red hair, Shinji's expression was an amalgam of horror, disgust, and disbelief, "Akagi can reverse it right? She's a genius so she of course is already going to reverse this right?" She had no illusions about things, if he was in Asuka's body and vice versa. Asuka would kill him if he ever got out of this bed and looked down.

Gathering a few articles of clothing, Rei placed them on Shinji's bed, her tiny frown was very telling for Shinji. "We just confirmed and eradicated what spiked the sync increase. Remnants of the computer AI angel infiltrated the system and the Eva's auto immune system was what officially caused the accident. As of right now there is no way to replicate the happenings."

"So I'm stuck like this!" Shinji drew her hand to her chest and accidentally cupped her own newly acquired breast. The stimulation was disastrously pleasant and a rosy hue adorned her cheeks, followed by shame as Rei's eyebrow rose a tiny degree. "I didn't mean to do that!" she shouted and pulled her still warm hand away. "Oh Kami-sama, this isn't happening."

Mystified, Rei was finding the new events more intriguing as she watched what was once an annoying creature acting differently, more pleasing to her pallet. Shinji's mind/personality in Asuka's body, Rei's subconscious saw infinite possibilities there. Pulling the blanket down, giving both of the girls a nice view of Asuka's body clad in a thin hospital gown, Rei spoke clearly, "You must get dressed. Major Katsuragi instructed me to bring you to her once you were briefed and calm."

Calm? How the hell anything could be considered CALM again! She…HE'D never be calm again! "Y-yeah, maybe she has something to tell me that is good. Like this is just some big alcohol fueled hysteria, brought on from me cooking with her booze on accident again." Swinging her legs over, Shinji couldn't help but feel weaker. While Asuka had proven a deft fighter, he had no skill like that, and she felt colder too, hospital gowns aren't known for having backs and the hospital A/C was dreadfully low. "What are you looking at Ayanami?" she quipped as Rei's gaze stopped meeting her eye to eye.

Watching Shinji's bodily reaction to the cold, Rei covered her own chest in response, "You should dress quickly, I will assist you as it is doubtful you have any skill at donning female attire." Regardless of what the rumors at Nerv said about him, Rei didn't think he was a closet homosexual, she'd noticed him watching her far too much for that, and if nothing else Rei was observant. Her gaze still mesmerized by the reaction Shinji had to the cold, Rei just nodded.

Finally catching on, Shinji yelped like the girl he now was, "STOP STARING AT ME PEVERT!" Covering her chest and the two pronounced protrusions, she cowered in the blanket until Rei apologized, then forcibly undressed/re-dressed her, only a small degree of inappropriate contact was made, but with her mind so frazzled it wasn't as if Shinji could enjoy it. Freshly clad in Asuka's school uniform, the female duo headed to the cafeteria where Misato instructed the walking talking stereotype for robots to bring the fledgling woman.

X-X

While Misato had been around the block more than one time, saw many strange and odd things, nothing prepared her for the shock she received after yet another blundered attempt from her college roommate. "Tell me again Ritsuko how we're supposed to deal with this?"

Sipping on coffee, her hand holding a donut, Ritsuko was the picture of ease. "It's nothing really that out of the ordinary, Misato. They'll just have to adapt to it until I can find a way to reverse it. Failing that, well…Asuka always more of a tomboy and Shinji is fairly feminine." Taking a big bite out of her chocolate frosted long john, Ritsuko couldn't have appeared less worried if she tried. "After some adjustment I'm sure everything will be fine."

"Asuka threatened to kill himself if this wasn't fixed by the time the drugs wore off!" Misato countered expertly. While she suspected Shinji had been stronger than he let on, Misato wouldn't have imagined that scrawny body capably of beating down two orderlies, but the scene from before proved that was the case. "And who knows how Shinji will react to this, I mean she's not the most stable of people."

Wiping the remaining sugery goodness off her lips and then licking it, Ritsuko shrugged. "I'm sorry Misato, but there is nothing else we CAN do but wait and try to reverse this." As time travel hadn't been invented yet, Ritsuko couldn't very well go back in time and worn herself about the last remnants of the angel lurking in the Magi. "We'll just have to be supportive of them, patient, and most important of all DON'T PLAY TRICKS on them!"

Her hand went up to offer a rebuttal, but Misato's brain couldn't come up with one, she had been thinking of how much more fun it would be to tease her surrogate son turned daughter. "I'll be good," she finally relented with sunken head and frown. "You're right this will be a tough adjustment for the two of them and they'll need us more than ever to deal with it."

"Major, I have brought Ikari-kun as instructed," Rei announced her arrival, holding tightly to Shinji's arm. "Shall I inquire to Soryu's status?" she asked as she led the bewildered Ikari to the table at which Misato sat. More than a couple of eyes from random Nerv employees fell on to the pair, it wasn't as if they didn't all know it already. Word spread like greased lightning around that place.

"Rei," Ritsuko started, "Why are you holding Shinji like that?" Far be it from Ritsuko to criticize female on female relations, she experimented in college as her friend could attest, but was it Rei had a thing for Shinji or Asuka or…her head hurt from the implications.

Taking a free seat at the table, Shinji bashfully ignored eye contact as she examined patterns in the mock wood tabletop. "I…can't walk very good right now. My balance is all off." She fell flat on her face three times before Rei insisted on helping to facilitate there progress. "Ayanami was making sure I didn't have anymore accidents." Hearing the half aborted snort/laugh from Misato, she set a baleful glare towards the purple haired woman.

Cutting Misato's laugh spree short, Ritsuko just nodded, "Your center of balance has shifted, just another one of the things you'll have to get used to…" Shinji's gaze shifted to her, and memories of Asuka spiked fear in the brilliant scientist. "Only until we fix things of course," she added quickly. Turning to Misato and seeing her friend still holding her mouth shut, periodically making spasms, she hoped the immature woman could keep it to herself. "Yes, Rei, go check on Asuka…make sure he's not to violent ok?"

A brief salute and head bob later, the perfect teenage soldier was off on her next mission leaving the confused and scared Shinji in the hands of Misato and Ritsuko. It could have been worse, though it could have been better.

Unable to look at the forlorn body that used to be the fiercest hellcat alive, Misato abruptly got up. "I'll get you something to eat, Shinji. I'm sure you could stand for something." And without waiting for a food request, Misato bolted so she could get her laugh out of her system. Her nerves were shot, her fears high, but seeing 'Asuka' clinging to Rei and then hearing about her inability to walk thanks to being top heavy now, Misato cracked under the stress.

Back at the table, Ritsuko was sending hate beams in Misato's general vicinity. "I'm sure Ayanami told you a lot about what happened. About the accident, the angel, and how we're going to work on a reversal." Taking her slow dropping head as a sign of acceptance she carried on, "Did you have any other questions about it right now that you have to have answered now?"

It was much to fast, everything was just happening at such a rapid pace. One day before he was having a semi-troubled life, he had friends, co-workers, a few girls he imagined courting, but now this. "Why did this have to happen?" her eyes stung mercilessly as the moisture gathered. "Why can't my life be normal?" The damn broke and the image once associated with unbreakable strength was crying heavily. "I didn't ask for any of this!"

Unused to comforting, Ritsuko brokenly embraced the crying teenager, "T-There there, Shinji. We'll fix it ok? Just try to be strong ok?" Holding Shinji, the troubled doctor scanned the cafeteria, sure enough more than half the room had its eyes on the pair, and no Misato in sight. "We-we'll be here for you, both of you, to help you get through this so…just calm down ok?"

Rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand, Shinji calmed herself down. Dabbing her eyes with a napkin Ritsuko had gotten for her hands, Shinji took several deep breaths. "Y-you're right Ritsuko-san. This is only temporary right…we'll be fine and as long as I don't upset Asuka everything should be fine."

Fine…Ritsuko had to wonder if that word had anything to do with the current situation. Didn't sound like it, how could anything be fine when two teenagers swap bodies! An insanely overprotective girl and a shy and self depreciative boy switched bodies, both of which were imperative for the survival of humanity had to deal with being the opposite sex. There wasn't a guidebook titled 'So now you're officially a boy/girl' that they could use, this was just plain old fashioned unknown territory. Ritsuko could only hope Asuka would take things better once she woke up.

X-X

Lying in his bed, Asuka stared up at the boring ceiling, seeing through the mundane and into the realm of psychopathic killers. Oh yes, somebody was going to die, a painful and miserable death. There simply wasn't any other alternative than murder for the outrage bestowed upon her. Forced into the body of her rival! And a BOY none the less! "But do I kill him or her?" While killing Shinji would be fun, a small part of her rebelled against that notion. Ritsuko, who was to blame, was the preferred target.

As she had done with Shinji, Rei startled the half-sleeping mental visitor, "Murder would result in incarceration and the inability to pilot." And her sense of protectiveness over Shinji was still fully in sway. "Might I suggest you take another dose of your medication?" Rei had already removed the tip of the needle and moved towards the boy's arm.

Batting Rei's hand away, Asuka sat up. "No more drugs for me, I have to see straight and think straight. Just being in this…this…body," his hands gestured up and down the modest physique, "Makes me ill. And not being able to see what that pervert is doing with my luscious and pristine body makes me want to throttle something."

"Pilot Ikari is presently in the cafeteria with Dr Akagi and Major Katsuragi. I was told to bring you if you were in a malleable state of mind." Rei's eyes denoted none of the fascination she had over the change. The timid boy looked livid, anger unknown to his features sparked and Rei had to admit she hated it. It was unbecoming of the expectations she had. "Your clothing is on the chair."

Jumping off the bed in a hurry, Asuka fell back onto the bed, unaccustomed to the lower center of gravity, he was having issues walking much as Shinji had. "Damn it! This clumsy body is infecting my mind!" Yes it had to be the body's fault as Asuka would have never made such a silly thing…he told himself anyway. "And what are you staring at!" Asuka hollered back at the albino viewing gallery.

The faintest hint of a blush was adorning the pallid cheeks of one Ayanami Rei. "Your gown is open in the back," and Rei was given a very up close and personal view of a firm behind. "If you wish to respect Ikari-kun's physical privacy you might consider tact in future actions, which is if you wish her to do the same."

"DAMN IT!" the confused boy raged and clutched the back of his gown closed, shutting down the free show. "Get out of here wonder girl…NOW!" It was going to be embarrassing enough dressing without wonder pervert talking about his ass. Once he heard the door close, he took several long and calming breaths. "Ok…I can do this. I dissected human bodies before in collage and this shouldn't be much more disgusting than that."

Adjusting far more quickly than Shinji had, Asuka gathered up his cloths and tossed them on the bed. "Guess he does have a decent sense of taste for a boy," he muttered as he looked at the button up white shirt and slacks. "Ok…on three. One-two-three…" all but ripping the gown over his head, Asuka chucked the tattered remains at the far wall and closed his eyes. "Shirt first," he said with a solemn oath to NOT look down for any reason.

A simple task, he put the shirt on and buttoned it up by feel, ignoring the surprisingly strong chest and arms. _Guess he wasn't such a wimp…or maybe all men are just stronger. _Next came the boxers… "Fuck those…not touching anything like that." The first mistake was made, not that the up until today German had any knowledge of that. Using part of the destroyed gown, he grabbed the offending undergarments and tossed them in the garbage. "Have to hurry or that Idiot will violate my chastity."

Dropping the pants to the floor, Asuka stepped into them while keeping his chin perpendicular to the floor. Looping his fingers into the belt straps he pulled up the valiant defenders of his eyes, reached for the zipper and… "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! GAH! IT HURTS!" Zipped himself inside the zipper. Unable to take the pain and think straight he looked at the offending organ and at the now open door where Rei had reemerged with nothing resembling concern on her face.

"Is something wrong?" the dead pan child asked, had it been Shinji hearing her talk he would have detected the hint of sarcasm. Clearing the distance in a matter of seconds, Rei grabbed the offending tab and none-to-gently liberated the constrained body part. "You forgot a step, the undergarments are used to protect your genitals from such harm." Unfazed by the part of the anatomy Asuka was having trouble with, Rei grabbed it, tucked it down and zipped up the slacks. "If you are finished we are needed."

"You just…what that…aren't you…" Asuka couldn't comprehend that Rei had just grabbed Shinji's bait and tackle and put it back in the tackle box. The pain overrode any actual sensation from the pale girl, but the idea was still there. Thankfully for Rei, Asuka's frazzled mind shut down as he was lead to the cafeteria where Shinji was now contently eating a bowl of soup and a concerned Misato watched.

X-X

Sitting on the couch back in the shared domicile, Asuka and Shinji refused to even look at the other. To see themselves staring back at them was far too surreal. "This is serious bullshit Misato and you KNOW it!" Asuka yelled as the uncomfortable silence that had accompanied them the moment they met in the cafeteria, the car ride home, and finally an hour on the couch. "We can't be expected to live like this, I can't allow that pervert to continue to inhabit MY body!"

"What would you suggest Asuka, and mind your swear words," Misato rubbed the sweat coming down her cheek. It was just creepy to have a somber Asuka and highly agitated Shinji. "Put her in a drug induced coma until Ritsuko can find a way to reverse this? And what if she can't? What if you're stuck like that?"

Without a moments hesitation Asuka's response, "If she can't fix this I'm killing myself! Just watch me!" The expected response was given, both Shinji and Misato expected the hyperbole of suicide, and neither correctly suspected Asuka to do it. "I mean I'm stuck in this boring body and he…he's in my supreme one! How is this fair?"

A surge of hormones kicked into the trouble girl's body, "It's not like I asked for this Asuka! You could stop and think about MY feelings too couldn't you? My world is just as mixed up now as yours, but all you can do is think of what I'm going to do to YOUR body, what about MY body?" She had no idea where the courage to talk up came from, it wasn't natural for her to be this forward, this outspoken, but what she didn't now was it was all due to her new hormones.

Misato just watched as Asuka sat back down, a troubled crease in his brow. "I…yeah guess you might have a bit of a point." His temper oddly dulled at the overflow of emotion from the girl next to him. "Just don't think I'll not be keeping an eye on you to make sure you don't take advantage of your blessing."

Her eyes, widened at the shock of Asuka calming down after Shinji's tiny tirade, settled as she opened her beer. Misato let out a healthy belch before she officially went into briefing mode. "As the two of you are aware, you've been asleep for the past two day's, more or less. During that time, Ritsuko examined the two of you and aside from the obvious mental issue, you're both perfectly healthy." Taking a deep sip of her beer, she expected some sort of rebuttal, when none came she continued. "As we don't know how long this will last, we've informed your school as to the change. No hiding of this will happen. What good would it do, neither of you could really act like the other anyway."

"Asuka would kill Touji and Kensuke if she tried," Shinji snickered at the mental image. She could see it clearly, Touji talking about whatever idol he wanted to sleep with and Asuka's instant divine fist on the back of his head. Or Kensuke's image gallery of Asuka on this computer would result in an immediate breakdown. And she had to admit she'd fair no better talking about 'girly' things with Hikari.

But while Shinji was accepting, Asuka wasn't to keen on the idea, "You're going to kill my social life! Every two-bit idiot boy will be hitting on me…him…her…YOU KNOW!" Asuka forked his thumb at his ex-body. While inhabiting the old body, Asuka had shot down the hopes and dreams of many potential suitors, now they'd all think they could have another go with a different personality behind the mental wheel.

"Shinji, you might want to take a bath now, Asuka and I are going to have a little chat," Misato was hoping that thanks to the college degree Asuka wouldn't have taken this so hard, hell Shinji (despite her depression on the matter) had accepted it and just hoped for a quick reversal.

Quick to object, Asuka grabbed Shinji's shoulder painfully hard and forced her to sit back down. "Like hell he…she will! That's my body and I won' t have him manhandling it!" Forgetting his newfound strength Asuka continued to squeeze and force. That is until Misato jumped up and threw him off Shinji. "What was that for!?"

"Look at what you were doing Asuka!" Misato tended to the wincing and red-eyed Asuka. Helping the poor girl up, Misato lead her to the bathroom door, "In case you've forgotten men are physically stronger and women more sensitive to pain! You were about to break your own body's collarbone without thinking about it!"

Momentarily stunned at his actions Asuka sat down as Misato soothed the sniffling Shinji and shooed him into the bathroom. While she hadn't liked to accept it, he was well aware that physical pain was something he had come to hate, but he had no idea of the drastic change in strength a male had. He'd have to remember that, both while in Shinji's body and when eventually back in her own. _If I hurt him so easily just now…what could he have done to me after all I've put him through? _

The answer was a lot. Still having the advantage of knowing martial arts would put Asuka on the winning side if an actual fight broke out. Give Shinji the advantage of a surprise attack and Asuka would be down before she could have put up a defense.

"Now what do you have to say for yourself you la-man?" Misato corrected mid-stride. This was going to take a lot of getting used to. Disciplining the boy that had for lack of better words taken care of her up till now. "I expected more from you, the perfect and mature Asuka Langley Soryu, taking his frustrations out on somebody suffering just as much if not more than you are."

Crossing his arms and looking out the patio window, "You're being unfair Misato. Why are you getting upset at me for? Shinji's the one that's taking things to far? Crying like that and milking sympathy. You never saw me crying when I was hurt did you?" He never would have let people see him week, had to keep up the mask of strength.

Reminded that she wasn't dealing with adults, she was dealing with scared teenagers, Misato altered tactics. Sliding from the chair to the couch, Misato draped an arm around Asuka's shoulders supportively. "I guess you're right Asuka, I have been a little one sided here. I guess I always expect you to be more mature because you graduated college already and all but demand respect. And my time with Shinji has led me to know he's more delicate than he seems. I'll try to be fairer with you if you promise to try and take it easier on her. Both of you are going to have a lot of adjustments to make until this gets fixed."

He wanted to object, to get angry at Misato's sudden shift from official mode to babying him and pampering him but he couldn't. He was mollified, Misato's warmth, her scent, her luscious breasts oh so close to his face. A brief mental image of him smothering his face between those ample pillows flooded his mind and for the first time since he woke up felt something stir. "Oh my god…oh my god…OH MY GOD!! MAKE IT STOP!" Asuka screamed as his manhood pressed painfully against the inside of his jeans.

"Asuka what's wrong?" Misato asked genuinely spooked by the complete 180 Asuka just underwent. For a moment Misato thought the two were bonding, a stark contrast to the usual simply living together they had done. Misato was always better at getting along with the boys. She hadn't expected the newness of Asuka's male body to have confounded her so much. "Tell me what is wrong Asuka and I'll try to help," grabbing the panicking boy by the shoulders, keeping him close, Misato was just adding fuel to the fire.

Harder and harder it pressed, the injury from earlier in the day all the more apparent, Asuka wanted to die. "It…it's nothing…just um…had a small break is all. I'm all better now, but I think I'll have a lie down?" He had to get away from that evilly sexy Misato! Oh how he had never really appreciated just how wonderful a body Misato had. Before it was a thing of jealousy, now her cursed body wanted nothing more than to grab hold of that flowing mane of hair and pull her in for some heated petting. "Just uh…get me when supper is ready ok?"

Her hand trailing after the boy as he all but ran to his old room, Misato stood agape. Just what was going on here, she hadn't the foggiest. She did know that this was going to be the norm until the two got more accustomed to things. Hell, was such a thing even possible for them? _In a few days maybe things will calm down, I have to hope for that. _Unbloody likely, but ignorance was bliss.

"M-Misato?" Shinji's nervous voice called out from behind the bathroom door.

Sucking up a torrent of air, Misato headed to troubled teen number two. "What is it Shinji?"

More fumbling could be heard on the other side of the door, a tiny crash and a heavy sigh. "I don't know how to…to take this stuff off? Rei went so fast this morning and I was…am so confused by it all…" Another pitiful sigh escaped her lips.

And the headache official started at that moment, as Misato opened the door to find the trembling Shinji still fully clad in school attire with a worried look on her face. "Just this once Shinji, you have to learn this and learn it fast ok? And make this quick, Asuka's off in his room taking a cool down and I think he's forgotten I sent you in here." Whatever spooked him, it happened at the best time if Shinji acted fast enough that is.

She did, and thanking the gods, Misato had a peaceful evening as both children sequestered themselves to there rooms to let everything sink in. Sure Asuka let out a few more threats that if anything had changed on her body when she got it back, Shinji wouldn't be spared, and again setting Asuka and Misato agape Shinji threatened the same thing.

X-X

Eyes fluttering open, Asuka let out a powerful yawn. With no window in the bedroom, a nightstand light was flicked on when the alarm for school rang. "Oh thank god…it was all just a horrible dream." Having her mind switched with Shinji's, getting painfully aroused by Misato, zipping up that annoying hunk of meat in the zipper. All of it.

"Yeah there is no way Misato could turn me on…not with her big breasts and those dark brown nipples of hers…hm…and the fact she actually shaves down there…" little did the boy realize was that his hand was slowly and totally without his actual want sliding down into the no-no zone. "I can picture her at the onsen now, how the water made her hair cling to her body like a sheet…"

For roughly ten seconds Asuka's sleep deprived and overly stressed mind continued to fantasize about his guardian. His hand under no actual central control found a happy little friend that was standing by the curbside that morning. 'Oh hello there Little Asuka how are you today?' the hand asked. Little Asuka's reply way 'I'm a little lonely how about you and I dance for awhile?' To which the hand joyously said, 'I thought you'd never ask, lets dance to Misato's fucking hot?' Little Asuka let Mr. Hand lead with a parting, 'I think I can get to like that song.'

Fast forward three seconds after initial contact.

"SHINJI!" Asuka screamed as he ran from her room, odd how the photos all the cute and muscular guys on the walls didn't make him all warm and fuzzy like before. "Open this door right now!" Asuka, sans pants and underwear, stood pounding on Shinji's door. "I said open this door right this second or I'll break it in!"

Things like tact, decorum, and sanity left the boy's mind as the hopeful dream came back to crashing reality. "That's it, I'm sure your doing something nasty in there!" Asuka opened the door and strode right in, flipping on the light as she did. Seeing a mound of potential flesh under the blanket, "Don't pretend to be sleeping, I have a serious issue here and YOU'RE going tell me how to deal with it!"

Very rudely woken from a very pleasant dream about fishing, Shinji groggily flung back the sheet and sat up. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, "Wa is it Asuka, I still have twenty minutes before I have…to…cook." The words died in her lips as the scene before her came into full clarity.

Asuka was standing at the foot of her bed, with just a shirt on, and his semi-inflated member in his hand. A very confused and misleading expression on his face lead the newly awakened female Shinji to grab the sheet and cover herself completely. "GET OUT OF HERE YOU PERVERT!"

"NO!" Asuka yelled back grabbing the sheet with his free hand. "You're going to tell me how to get this demon thing to go back down! And you're going to do it NOW!" It burned his hand with how hot the damnable thing was! How could men go on with this stupid divining rod going off every other second!

Peeking out from over the covers, "Just stop…touching it ok? It goes down on its own if you leave it alone." Speaking from experience, Shinji didn't exactly like watching Asuka squeezing what had once been hers. "It gets that way in the morning, sex ed said it was to keep the blood flow going so it doesn't die off." Or something like that, Shinji never had known to well why he had morning wood, just that it was an annoyance he had to occasionally hide from Asuka.

Ripping off the blanket and throwing it to the ground, Asuka wasn't buying it. The previous day the stupid thing stood up when Misato was flaunting her delicious body, and this morning it was thinking about it that got the infernal rod all randy. _How the hell did he hide this thing too! Stupid thing sticks out about half a foot!_ Pushing Shinji to the bed, never minding his manhood was dangerously close to touching her. "You'll tell me how to control this thing or so help me I'll…"

Drawing her hands up to her chest, Shinji shoved at Asuka as she loomed preditoriously over her. "Stop it Asuka, or I'll scream for Misato!" It wouldn't have helped as Misato's response to the situation last night was to get so hammered she had dreams about nails. "Now just listen to me ok, stop thinking about it, or think of things you find unappealing."

"What do you think of," Asuka asked genuinely intrigued. Never having to have dealt with this type of situation before, he was all ears on how to stop it. Pulling off his former body, Asuka waited with baited breath for a way to make the thing in his hand stop being so damn hard. "And if you say me I'll belt you right here," never one to not give mixed signals Asuka was in rare form.

Gazing around the room, trying to keep the panic that was brewing deep within her from overwhelming her mind, Shinji blurted out the first thing that to mind. "Ice, ice water, cold things, my father, just about anything that repulses me. That usually does the trick." Well it did when she used to have the problem.

Closing his eyes, she tried exactly what Shinji said. Slowly, agonizingly slow, the blasted thing started to soften, and shrink, and finally went back to normal. "Oh thank god for that…this is going to be hell on earth for me. You're stupid body responds to just about EVERYTHING!" Case in point, due to his manhandling of his ex-body, the shirt Shinji had slept in had opened exposing her budding chest to the former occupant… "OH NOT AGAIN!"

Yes, he was aroused by his own old body.

By this time Misato finally woke from all the screaming, a jackknife headache pounding away at her sanity. Walking into Shinji's room to find Asuka still with member in hand over the partially nude Shinji, simply grabbed Asuka and drug her out of the room. "Ritsuko better find something fast…or I'm going to kill Shinji's body."

X-X

Author notes.

Yeah it's the tried and true mind swap story. I always liked them but never wrote one. And I've usually wrote Asuka as being a side character or 'best friend' so I thought I'd try and give the German more of a staring role. Hope ya all enjoy this thing and continue to support me in my insane little ditties.

As for the novel, it's about 80% done!!!! Hoping to have it done soon and try and find somebody to give it a chance. Wish me luck

Ja Mata

Zentrodie


	2. Chapter 2

Standard disclaimer

I have so many options on what I could be doing right now its scary. So what do I do? I write chapter two of this little ditty…satisfaction may vary.

X-X

It can't get any worse

Chapter – 2

Sitting at the table, Asuka looked down at his traditional breakfast with revulsion. "This isn't fair!" Setting down the chopsticks, he was about to throw the plate at the wall had Misato and Shinji not been in the way. "It's all your fault Shinji, you and your stupid body!"

Looking at the liquor cabinet and wondering if it was too early to hit the hard stuff, Misato rolled her eyes. "I told you Asuka you have to go to school today. We already informed them about this so you might as well bite the bullet and get it over with." Having had a quick crash course on manners with the boy just an hour ago, Misato would have liked Asuka to have respected the new ground rules on the gender bender.

Pushing the plate away from him, "That's not what I'm angry about, its his tongue!" He stuck out the offending muscle much like an agitated toddler. "He doesn't like the taste of hash browns or coffee! My favorite breakfast ruined!" When he first saw that Shinji made it for him, Asuka was touched. Now she was touched but in a bad way. "This just keeps getting worse."

Eyeing her breakfast, tea and miso soup, Shinji nodded, "He's right. Asuka doesn't like this either." Being more apt to change than Asuka, Shinji picked up her bowl and swapped it for Asuka's and started eating. "Much better. What?" She asked noticing how Misato and Asuka were both giving her and awkward eye.

Pounding the last of her beer down, Misato got up and dumped half of her food in the trash. "That about does it for my appetite." Shinji behaving more open and direct was just messing horribly with her mind. Misato didn't know if it was the new hormones coursing through Shinji's brain or if Asuka's personality left a little time bomb behind. "I'm going in to work early today to have a chat with Maya and Ritsuko about progress, you two better get a move on to school." Exit our heroine stage right.

Taking a queue from Shinji, Asuka swapped out the coffee for the tea and continued eating. "You better not do anything stupid today Shinji, and know I'll be watching you like a hawk." It was nerve wracking to know that his once pristine body was going to be the center of attention again only it wasn't him that was going to be receiving it. "I'll talk to Hikari to help you in PE and to keep you out of trouble."

Smiling warmly at her, Shinji was moved slightly, "Thanks Asuka. I was a little worried about that. And if you want I can do the same with Touji and Kensuke." Having Asuka be nice to her was a welcome change. Her whole world just exploded on the insane O' meter but having some actual concern from Asuka really soothed her. "I guess I should ask if you have anymore…questions about…things?" And by 'things' she meant Asuka's 'thing'.

Heat…but warm heat…soothing and pleasant and very welcome followed that smile. Had he the option, Asuka might have stared at it all day. _GET A HOLD OF YOURSELF! _ His mind kicked in, reinstalling the Ikari-Hating program. He couldn't feel that way about the idiot that stole his body! "No, I think I can control the stupid thing now, seriously how men manage is beyond me. Women have it so much easier. The only thing you'll have…oh. Shit."

Gathering up the empty dishes, Shinji set them in the sink to soak, she'd finish after school. "What's wrong Asuka, did it…" she pointed her finger down towards what she worried was a growing problem. Why Asuka was having such a hard time controlling it was beyond Shinji. When she was a he, there was hardly a time that it got a rise unless Misato was really drunk and fully into playful mode. "Remember think about cold things."

"No its not your…my…IT! I just remembered my cycle," Asuka stopped looking at Shinji's ass after she turned around. _Damn I've a smoking hot ass…all peach shaped and…STOP LUSTNIG AFTER MYSELF! _That would never be an easy thing to accept, but Asuka had to admit he really found his old body very attractive. "Stupid hormones," she muttered but seeing the clueless ness on Shinji's face finished with, "My…I guess its yours now period should come in about a week or so."

Drying her hands off, Shinji's face paled, "Oh no…what do I do?" She wasn't ignorant to the monthly visitor that Misato and Asuka got; he wisely hid in his room during that time of the month. Asuka was in constant pain and Misato was a constant bitch and both had taken it out on him. "Can't I like take something to stop it or…this isn't fair!"

Extracting himself, careful not to bounce Little Asuka off the table lip, Asuka shrugged. "I guess I get some revenge after all, now lets get going so I can tell you how to act at school." Grabbing his schoolbag and tossing Shinji her shoes, Asuka wasn't going to let sexy Shinji fulfill any foolish boys wish for becoming a man. It was time for a crash course in bitchery and spite for all things with a penis…except his…wait did that come out right? _No no, that was a mistake I totally don't want to test out Shinji's little friend on my body…STAY DOWN! _

X-X

Her mind was frazzled from Asuka's ceaseless rules and threats, but Shinji was going to do her best to honor them. Hell she wanted to honor most of them because the idea of offending Asuka by doing breaking them hurtful. _So…sit with legs together or crossed, don't talk to boys, don't let them talk to me, don't drink any offered drink, be wary of celphone cameras, don't look at myself when I use the rest room, and most of all don't touch places not meant to be touched. _She could do that, oddly enough the small hum of lust she used to live with was gone. "Are we ready for this?" she asked her companion as they stood outside the classroom.

"I'd rather stay home until this whole thing ends, but since Misato is going to be a bitch about it lets jut get it over with," Asuka barked. Why did he have to go anyway…well that was obvious now. Wherever Shinji went Asuka was going to follow, _Like it or not we're attached at the hip now…not that way! _It was infuriating! Everything somehow conjured up images of sex! What the hell was causing it Asuka didn't know, but he didn't like it. "Remember what I told you, I'll be watching you."

Walking through the door, the pair had readied themselves for some reaction from the class. Maybe a small gasp, some muttered talking behind covered mouths. Typical teenage overreaction to a simple issue of mental transference, the thing you grow out of in time. What they got was a trifle beyond the expectations. The room exploded it ruckus laughter, shrilled yells, and several catcalls. All of which ended when…

"WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE!" Asuka roared at his beloved public. Throwing a desk across the room, colliding with several others and making a lovely mess of things, Asuka was displacing who the alpha male was. "This is bullshit and you all know it! I will not tolerate anybody making shit out of ME or Shinji for this, do...I…make…myself…clear!" With each word he stomped his foot and advanced upon the fellow students who all fell back.

Blushing lightly, a mix of embarrassment and appreciation for Asuka again going out of his way to help her, Shinji meekly snuck by and went to her desk. The idea that the students had that maybe it was all a big joke had been obliterated by Asuka's overt display of masculinity, a trait Shinji lacked. Eyeing her friends as they confusingly sat down by her, "Yeah its true guys, I'm Shinji."

Watching Shinji's body sit down my Hikari as if the whole 'I am man hear me roar' thing hadn't happened, Touji had to admit it wasn't looking like a joke anymore. "Shit dude…dudette…Shinji this is some seriously messed up stuff!" His best friend was in the body of his most hated enemy! How the hell could such things happen! "Do they have a way to fix it?"

Kensuke adjusted his glasses and slowly shook his head, "Yeah, I don't think I want to see your body doing that stuff ever again. I mean it just tore up the classroom!" However, Kensuke's brain was already seeing possibilities here. The photo business was good, but it could be better. _If I could get Shinji to pose for some spicier pictures it really could make us all a mint! _His otaku brain working overtime already accepted the notion of mind swaps so it wasn't as hard for him to accept. "What are you going to do in the mean time? I mean she'll totally ruin your image and reputation by acting like that."

Tempted to ask 'what reputation' Shinji sagely kept her mouth shut. "Akagi-san is looking for a way to revert this, but its going to take time." Hopefully less than a week or the dreaded monthly visitor would surely destroy her mind. "And in the mean time we just have to accept this and try to make do." About to try changing the topic, the newly awaked female Shinji realized something, Touji and Kensuke were totally checking out her goods! "And what might I ask are you two looking at?"

Caught red handed ogling finely crafted breasts, Touji rubbed his nose and turned his head skyward. "Don't know what you're talking about man, just trying to uh…take it all in and stuff. You being a girl in all, does that change anything between us?" One couldn't do guy stuff with a girl right? So did that mean Shinji was going to stop hanging out with them? More importantly was Shinji's mind in Asuka's body made for a seriously dynamite duo! Sexy yet oddly girly.

Eyes not on the top but the bottom, Kensuke with all the dignity he could muster had a serious nosebleed. "Shit man…sorry sorry, its just well…" leaning in close, closer than he would have if Shinji was still a boy, "I never really got good looks at Asuka before, usually all pissed at us and stuff and well…you're hot man." Sure the creepiness factor was in the upper ionosphere, what with Shinji having been a good male buddy days before. "This is going to take a long time to get used to."

Having an epiphany, Shinji realized why Asuka had called them perverts now. They were! Not to the degree that she wanted nothing to do with them, or have restraining orders placed to keep them from killing Pen-Pen in a fit of jealous heart pounding rage, just she'd be more careful around them. "Yeah, it really is. And Touji it doesn't really change anything. We can still hang out and hit the arcade like we used to, just don't expect me to be exactly the same as I was before."

Across the room, Asuka fumed as he watched Shinji FLIRTING with those IDIOTS! Was it really flirting, no his brain did accept that, but he wanted it to be to justify his anger. "Hikari I'm going to kill Shinji when this is all over, you know that right?" Though the tone didn't denote anger at all, and Asuka himself noticed. _My thoughts are just so different now, things that used to matter really don't anymore._

Just as uncertain about the change as the boys, Hikari did what she did best when presented with a problem she didn't like, she ignored it. Acting as if Asuka was still a girl and not the semi-cute boy he was now, Hikari let blissful ignorance take over. "I know you will, but until then you're just going to have to accept this right?" Asuka did say that 'the bitch' was working on reversing things. _Whoever this 'bitch' is I hope she has life insurance. _Hikari could easily see Asuka making blood paste out of said woman if things didn't move quickly.

With immense effort, Asuka forced himself to stop observing the idiot trio. Watching Shinji over there was so confusing, like looking into a different dimension. "So what about you Hikari, what do you have to say about all of this?" Hey now, what was this!? _When did Hikari become so beautiful? _Why hadn't he noticed before, just how lovely Hikari was in a plain easygoing fashion.

Almost feeling Asuka's thoughts Hikari giggled a little and let the revulsion slide into the pit of ignorance too. "I think it's going to take a lot to cope with it all. Things must be hellish for the two of you, new sensations, new mental drives, and worries." Hikari wasn't oblivious to the wanton gazes falling on Shinji. It was Asuka's personality that kept the boys at bay, now that it was a kinder and gentler personality it was going to be a field day.

But that wasn't all that had changed, and both Asuka and Shinji missed it. The girls were giving Asuka a second thought now. Before Shinji had been to pensive and meek to stand out to them, but with Asuka's all out he-man display it caught their attention. The boy wasn't weak, wasn't a pushover, was very easy on the eyes, and they liked it. Add in some of the girls hero worship of Asuka but lack of lesbian tendencies, now that she was a he a whole new world opened to them.

So as Shinji tried to not appear offended by Touji's joke, and Asuka willed his body to not react to Hikari, the classroom planned and plotted. Had Rei been there, she would have attempted to alleviate things, but the blue dynamo had been summoned to Nerv for sync tests.

X-X

"So he really was standing over Shinji without pants and underwear?" Ritsuko had expected some oddities from the ordeal but not so dramatic and so soon. The idea of being a man, just for a day mind you, had intrigued the good doctor. Given the chance would she fail a woman just as every man she'd dated failed her? Or would her knowledge of female anatomy give the lucky lady a good run in the sack. _Wonder if Misato would be willing to try…have to switch with Kaji though because the idea of 'being' Gendo Ikari makes me want to vomit._

Not as accepting as Ritsuko, Shigeru wasn't buying it. "Major that's impossible. Asuka is a college graduate and self appointed genius. And you want us be believe she doesn't know how the male anatomy works?" Though the imagery Misato's story was good for one hell of a laugh it just wasn't conceivable. Turning from his console, Shigeru was content with the boring work today, gave plenty of time for Misato's story hour.

Tapping her foot, a jolly smile on her face, Misato was enjoying being away from her wards. "Believe it or not, I had to pull Asuka away from Shinji 'friend' in hand. He really is taking this worse than expected." Or maybe there expectations were off for this type of thing. "Anyway it's strange to see how they're both changing."

Today's donut of choice was a jelly filled vanilla, Ritsuko took a monster bite out of it and, with mouth full, "Wha chu mean?" Changes were bad things, nothing good came from change. Misato changed and the fun loving alcoholic was an instant mother hen, Gendo changed and a mysterious powerful man became a misogynistic abusive brute.

Dusting off the pre-chewed food product, compliments of her friend, Misato deftly moved out of projectile range. "Shinji's standing up for herself a little now and Asuka is backing down more often. I don't know what to make of it." Sitting down and pushing back hard, her back arching ever so much she cocked her head back and sighed. "And last night when I was talking to Asuka alone he just got all panicky. Shouting 'make it stop' and then hiding in his room."

His throat suddenly was terribly dry, Shigeru was mesmerized Misato. He didn't have it hard for her like Makoto did, but even at times like this he was stricken by just how vivacious Katsuragi could become. "Uh….what was happening before it? Like what did you do?" And if I paid you would you dance for me? That last part was psychically beamed to Misato's brain had he the ability.

"Yeah, maybe if you explain the scenario to us we can help place what it was?" Ritsuko had a small inkling of an idea. Watching Misato hypnotize men with her breasts, face, and hips had always been a fun part of going out drinking with her. Factoring in Asuka's new hormonal balance, Ritsuko had the sneaking suspicion about what was going on.

Drawing a leg up to her chest, Misato hugged it, laying her cheek against it. "Well he had just hurt Shinji, accidentally, when I told her to take a bath. I yelled at him, he said I was unfair, I changed tactics and tried being nice and…" Misato was rambling off her list of Asuka counter measure procedures when Shigeru interrupted.

"What exactly does that entail, changing tactics," he couldn't be sure, not with Misato. Changing tactics could mean getting the boy drunk to torture and everything in between. His head wobbling back and forth as he maintained eye to thigh contact.

Regrettably for Shigeru, Misato sat up straight and shrugged. "I just sat by him, put my arm around him like I always do and he just freaked." It hurt to have somebody you had come to count on for support just up and yell at you. _Shinji always let me hug him and never got…_

"You did this with Asuka or Shinji before, Misato?" Ritsuko filled in Misato's mental blank. "Because I don't see Asuka of two days ago letting you come close to doing that." The puzzle was all coming together now, and it was one dozy of a picture. "It was Shinji wasn't it."

Her hand fell to her side, lifeless and dead. "It was Shinji, not Asuka…" A horrifying thought was forming in her mind. Something she never thought possible, a concept so disgusting and wrong it should have been burnt out of her skull with plasma. "Asuka was attracted to me physically. He was talking about his…but that means that Shinji…Shinji…" This was the part her brain didn't want to accept, "Shinji never thought about how sexy I am!"

Shigeru and Ritsuko both fell out of their respective chairs as Misato's concerns were made known. It wasn't Asuka's wanting to enter into manhood before Shinji using the Misato overpass, it was that Shinji wasn't already in the approach lane. Without a word, Shigeru stood up, walked out of the prim box, drove to a bar, and proceeded to try and drown himself with booze.

Ritsuko on the other hand, wasn't sure if Misato was joking or serious. At times her friend seemed to genuinely care maternally for the Ikari boy and at other times seemed that her whole life revolved around making Shinji's life a never ending nightmare. "Misato I'd thank you to never mention something like that again please. I know you like to bask in your own fame train, but being upset that Shinji isn't attracted to you is a little out there. You don't want him to have an Oedipus complex do you? I mean for all intensive purposes you're the closest thing to a mother the kid's got."

The ruin that her life had instantly became, reverted back to the sunshine lollipop field it was before. "I guess you have a point Ritsuko, never thought of it that way." Oblivious to Shigeru's leaving, "Guess I'll go check on Rei, she seemed a little odd when she was heading for her test. Maybe some part of this is hard for her too."

"Don't think to hard about that one," Ritsuko's snide remark fell on deaf ears as Misato wasn't paying attention anymore. "Seriously why does everybody notice these things about Ayanami that I couldn't give to shits about?" Frustrated and alone, Ritsuko finished her donut and went back to her hobby of watching random people doing odd things via the Nerv security monitors.

X-X

"That has got the be the longest day of school I've ever had," Asuka moaned as the pair entered the living room. It wasn't anything special that made the day long, just his anxiety about Shinji doing something unforgivable with the purloined body. "Make us something good…something you like that way I'll like it." Hopefully his new palette wasn't going to be so far off that he'd never enjoy a good stroganoff again.

Setting her school articles by the entrance, Shinji was very much inclined to agree with Asuka. "I'll see what we have, if I need though I'll make a run to the market for something nice." Touji and Kensuke grilled her none stop with questions about 'how it felt' and 'what is it really like' to be a woman. Being a girl for one full day didn't give Shinji the market on information given the subject.

Flipping on the television, Asuka fell heavily on the couch. "No you won't, if anybody is going out for groceries it'll be me. I can't risk somebody coming up to you while I'm not there to keep an eye on you." Not less than four guys had slowly stalked Shinji only to be scared off by Asuka. Even the jocks and track team had been intimidated by 'weak Shinji' exploding in rage. The rumor had already circulated more than half the school and the girls were just eating it up.

"If you say so," the cheerful reply from Shinji rang in the apartment as she made her way to the kitchen. She had seen the eyes of the boys on her during the day, most were just in stunned awe of the change that having Shinji at the steering wheel created, but a few didn't appear to have the noblest of intentions. _And my back is killing me, whatever is causing this has to stop._ Finding some nice fish in the freezer she pulled it out to thaw. "How about some nice grilled fish and rice?"

Stopping the television on a nice broadcast of the Miss Tokyo-3 pageant, Asuka's mind shut down. "Yeah…whatever you want." So much flesh was there, taunting him with its elasticity and naughty goodness. "S-Shinji?" Asuka asked as the last bastion of his self restraint starting to really get into the talent competition.

Popping her head around the doorframe, "What is it?" Idle hands were the devils playground and idle minds spent too much time investigating the wonders of womanhood. Shinji counted the extra time she spent thinking lately in nano-seconds. It really kept the gut retching horror at bay. "Something you want from me, because I was about to make some side dishes." Seeing Asuka all but humping the television with his eyes, Shinji walked over and turned it a news station. "Better?"

Slapping himself hard, but not to hard, Asuka just nodded, "It was like fucking hypnosis! I…I couldn't look away." How shameful he'd become, stupid body was more in control of his body than the brain. "I don't know how you lived like this for so long and not have me kill you." Had Asuka seen Shinji eating women up with his eyes, she'd have thrown the body off of the balcony.

"Maybe because I lived as a man my whole life I was desensitized to it all and since its so new to you…" she pondered and headed back to the kitchen. It was nice to not be at the mercy of a sex drive, but it felt odd to see men and get all warm and fuzzy. _I'm not gay, but it's just how a girl's body reacts. _She repeated this mantra some forty times during the course of the day. "Say Asuka, do you ever get back pain?"

To embarrassed by his failure with the dancing images on the screen, Asuka held back on the joke he had thought of. "If I'm standing for to long I do…well used to." That was a nice benefit of being a man, he got to look but didn't have to carry the excess baggage. "Just sit down for a few minutes and it'll go away." The devilish notion of giving the lovely young body a massage came to mind, and Asuka quickly banished it with the equivalent of a mental nuclear strike.

Sliding a stool up to the stove, "I guess I can sit and watch this." Pen-Pen had made his appearance known, going to the typical food provider only to have Asuka punt the bird into the kitchen where Shinji had fed it some nice marinated sardines. Pen-Pen's life was in a state of abstract madness. Twenty minutes of boring television and nonstop food preparation, the meal was on the table and the pair ate in silence.

For the first day of school and second day as the opposing gender, they both were mentally taxed and the quiet did them good. Both however avoided eye contact with the other. Seeing themselves eating was strange, but the stranger thing was how abnormally nice it felt. Asuka's mind wasn't constantly belittling itself over things and Shinji wasn't comparing itself against others and finding faults.

It was so nice that it scared the hell out of both of them. And their minds mirrored each other with the thought: _I can't like this, I have to hate it…but I don't._

X-X

Being in Gendo's office was much like standing in front of a firing squad. When the news was bad, it wasn't 'will I survive' it was 'who can I get to die for me'. With the news that his son was now a daughter, and the state of the Eva's was unknown due to the change, Misato and Ritsuko were both thinking of how to stab the other in the back.

"I hear there was an accident during the test yesterday," Gendo said with his back to the ladies. He had been at a Seele committee meeting and had missed the scheduling and reason for the duel sync test. "Would one of you explain?"

Jumping in before Ritsuko could hedge her bets, Misato took a step forward. "Dr Akagi wanted to try and repeat the duel synchronization that occurred during Asuka's debut battle. That being both children in the same entry plug." Was that fear in her voice or was it all in her mind, whatever the was she didn't like it. "There was no real purpose for the test save scientific curiosity."

Point 1 Misato.

As Misato took a step back, Ritsuko found herself in the center ring. Defend her position or attack Misato's? The best defense was always a good offence for the doctor. "With all due respect sir, the test had very valid merit. If a situation calls for precise action pilots Ikari and Soryu had proven they can work together in separate Eva's, but we need to know if they can do so in the same." In the dark confines of her mind, Ritsuko wasn't so upset about sleeping with the man now, it did give her brownie points.

However, Gendo wasn't the type of man who cared who slept with him. It was all a power trip for the commander of Nerv, never about physical needs, just mental. So Ritsuko's twisted hopes held no place. "But with three Evangelion's at present with a fourth on the way. The notion that we'd need to consolidate pilots into one unit is weak. Your test truly didn't hold any pertinent data. And now we have only one pilot that we know will be capable of sortie if the case calls for it."

Point 2 Misato.

When Ritsuko was back in line with her, Misato took the next step. "Sir, we can have them test tomorrow to insure they can still pilot an Eva. Be it there designated unit or the other." Clearing her throat, that frog was sliding down as Ritsuko's color attempted to match a certain blue haired pilot. "If we provide time for Dr Akagi with the assistance of Maya Ibuki we might find a way to reverse the effects of the test."

"Are you telling me how to allocate my personnel major?" Gendo asked and finally spun around and set his elbows on the desk before him. He knew the pose stuck fear and anxiety in the minds of those who saw it…that's why he did it. "I do not believe your position had such powers. I will direct who I see fit for this task."

Saluting sharply, Misato's fear skyrocketed right back up next to the Hubble telescope. "I apologize sir. It was not my intent to tell you what to do." Warning sirens were firing off in her head, the tone Gendo was using was unfamiliar to them and the ever silent Fuyutsuki was well…silent. It was one thing to fuck up, it was another thing all together to turn your bosses son into a daughter with no known way to reverse it. "What would you have us do sir?"

Opening her mouth to agree with Misato, Ritsuko's body rebelled in an act of bravery to keep her body from being shot. It wouldn't work, and the bottle blond was nothing more than a very attractive statue, just as Gendo liked. _I'm fuck, I'm screwed, he's going to kill me and then violate the remains with a copper pipe, then feed me to Unit 01! _And while her genius brain was singing its death song, a Christmas miracle happened two months early.

"I'll let you know when I decide, you are both dismissed," he waved them towards the door and turned to his trusty second in command. When he didn't hear footsteps, Gendo turned back, "Was there anything else?"

Both women saluted, said 'no' and walked as fast as they could while maintaining a rudimentary sense of style. With a none-to-quiet door slam later, Kozo's brow creased, "You're taking this very well. I would have thought you'd have at least threatened them with death like you do for any minor inconvenience."

Pushing his glasses back up his nose, Gendo smirked. "On the contrary sensei, Yui wanted a son while I always wanted a daughter. I don't care if they can't reverse the change, we know Yui won't reject him and Zeppelin was just as crazy as that daughter now son of hers so she won't either. Nothing has changed that impacts the scenario at all."

In the Eva hanger bay, a purple monster and a red monster appeared to have a look of expectation about them, either for good or bad wasn't yet known.

X-X

Author Notes

Yeah it's a lil shorter, but this was more of a set up chapter than anything. Got a few good jabs in but still its more laying pipe than anything. Hope ya liked it.


	3. Chapter 3

Standard Disclaimer

I really wanted to work on the novel as of late, but a series of bad events really put a hindrance on concentration. Won't go into it as that's not why you're here, but at least I'm able to provide this for your reading enjoyment.

X-X

It Can't Get Worse

Chapter – 3

She didn't know what to make of the activation test she was watching, but Ritsuko doubted it was a good sign. Even she at times had noticed the slight emotional tinge the Eva's had, although never to the degree she was witnessing now. "Shinji how are you feeling?" she switched off the comm. to the other plugs. "I know this has been a rough time for you these last three days. Anything you want to talk about?"

Waking up after a very restful sleep, her time with Asuka the previous day quite refreshing, Shinji was smiling timidly at the camera. "I feel fine Akagi-san. It feels different in here though, almost colder." Had she spoken truthfully, Shinji would have mentioned a heavy air of depression and underlying rage, but Shinji put that off as just random sync noise. "Is something wrong?"

Seeing the brooding form of Unit-01, how it oozed with anxiety and a lumbering ominous feeling that a berserker rage was imminent, Misato put on her best fake grin and lied through her teeth. "Not at all Shinji. Just your ratio is down a little, nothing major but we wanted to ask all the same." Flipping off the comm. Misato shrugged and leaned against Maya's console. "Tell me that thing isn't looking pissed off today, normally I get the impression that its content, but now it just feels like it wants to ripe something apart."

_Gendo did say Yui was the type to hold grudges, maybe that's why he isn't here today,_ Ritsuko thought with her deeper knowledge of the Eva to soul ratio. "Maya get her out of there, that's all we need today from her." Moving from monitor one to two, the scenario couldn't have been any more different. "Asuka you're going to have to calm down and try harder to concentrate on this test." Unlike Shinji, Asuka was a bag of frustration and pain while Unit-02 was a bastion of joy and radiated success.

Kyoko Zeppelin Soryu had wanted a son more than anything, and the bastards at the artificial insemination clinic told her that she had nothing to worry about. When she saw the sonogram and realized she was having a daughter a small part of her died that day. She couldn't even blame it on her husband as he had no part in it. But now, within her mechanical body was the son she always wanted, and she would protect him from all harm! To add ice cream to the cake was the fact that her son had the body of Yui Ikari's child! Friendly rivalry existed between the two and while Yui got what she wanted from child birth and Kyoko didn't, now the tables had turned!

"I'm trying to concentrate damn it, but it's just so warm in here!" Asuka moaned. As with Unit-01, the red Evangelion's was experiencing mode shifts. Pleasing and reassuring waves of contentment and pride were being beamed from the soul in the core directly into the son Kyoko always wanted, and Asuka wasn't in a very soothing mood. "Stupid Shinji not telling me to watch for pressurizing the damn suit…WHY DO THEY NEED TO BE SO TIGHT!"

Holding back a snort, Misato covered her mouth, "Now Asuka I don't think that's the type of thing you want broadcast across Nerv do you?" Though it did get a chuckle from many of the off camera personnel. Little Asuka gets crushed in the plugsuit, guess somebody wasn't having pure and chaste thoughts. "Anyway, how are things for you in there Asuka?"

"Ma'am, Asuka's sync ratio has spiked a good ten percent from last test," Maya was flabbergasted. Shinji took a dive while Asuka shoots up, maybe Shinji's old body was more attuned to the Eva's than the soul. "His uh-pain aside this is looking promising for him." With the pride of Germany's finest at stake, having this was a boon.

While in the sweltering entry plug, Asuka was anything but relieved to hear his ratio was up. "Can I get out of here now, I feel creepy sitting in this thing right now." A dotting mother was poking and prodding her new son's mind for ways to insure that the change was permanent and it was really irking Asuka to no end, not that he realized it. "And you tell Shinji not to get in that damn shower until I'm there to make sure she doesn't do anything!"

Now that got a rousing bout of laughter from everybody listening. Ritsuko just shook her head and frowned, "Asuka we can't have you following women into the locker room. You are a boy right now and that means you have to leave Shinji in peace. Anyway she went off with Rei five minutes ago while you were complaining about your…cramps." Why hadn't they ever heard this before with Shinji? Hell the boy had been with them longer than Asuka and this was the first mention of member to thigh crush they ever heard. _Maybe Shinji really wasn't into girls that much._

Shinji was with Rei! Fucking wondergirl! "Get me out of this thing now or so help me I'll ripe through this place! Who knows what those two are…wait…" Asuka's mind finally caught up with him. Shinji couldn't be doing anything with Rei as he currently had Shinji's friend painfully riding against the not so smooth plastic. That and as more snickers were heard he realized just how perverted his statements sounded. Opting to just shut up and make peace with the situation, Asuka closed his eyes and focused.

Ten minutes of silent Asuka later, Makoto tugged on Misato's shoulder. "You're right, he did back down a lot faster than he used to. Seeing him like that is almost like looking into the past at Shinji. Has a surreal feeling." The timid yet longing man refused to actually look at Misato, lest he be bewitched by her as he oft was. Though he could smell that intoxicating perfume she wore as it wafted through the air.

"Tell me about it. A happier Shinji and a calmer Asuka, who would have thought about it," Misato said without any real sense of peace. She didn't know what to make of the whole business. While it was reassuring that the pair weren't edging closer to insanity thanks to losing a few things and gaining others, it was unsettling to see how well they adapted. Having been avoiding Shinji due to her inability to cope with losing the son she had come to love, Misato didn't know if the same sense of closeness would be there between them. "Alright Asuka you can get out now, just remember not to go into the female side."

"Right, right," the annoyed response came over the comm. as Asuka punched in the exit codes to escape his mothers smothering love. His little problem with the skin tight plug suit had actually arisen from the damnable locker room, it with it's oh so thin dividing wall that gave a perfect silhouette of what had turned out to be Rei. _I thought it was Shinji, but no it was the freak. _Though freak didn't seem to right a word anymore, alluring, mysterious, fucking hot, and delectable were pushing deeper into his mind. "I do not find her attractive, I do not find her attractive…stupid Shinji's body."

X-X

Shinji didn't know what was stranger, the fact she was alone with a naked Ayanami Rei or the fact that it really didn't phase her. "How are you feeling Ayanami?" she asked after noticing the pale girl refused to meet her eye to eye. Doing her best to avoid looking down meant Shinji was given an unabashed view of a girl she had not one week ago had a mild crush on. _Not that I didn't…don't…have one on Asuka too. _

Confused was the best way to sum up the albino's mental state. "I am perplexed, Ikari-kun." She had annoyingly found herself liking Shinji's company before. Her life was one big sheet of grey paper with nothing on it till that sticker of Shinji was slapped on it. Now though it was strange. Asuka was a bitch, an annoying upstart that came around and stole much of Shinji's time. Now the body of the girl housed the soul of the person she liked, while the body of the boy was now a rage filled bastard. "But the matter at hand is how you are adapting to your new situation."

Scrubbing herself with an Asuka-approved sponge, Shinji connected with Ayanami on a way she never had as a boy. "You don't have to change the subject Ayanami-san, you're not looking at me, before you would at least do that when we talked. So why don't you tell me what is wrong?" The steaming water was filling the small stalls up with mist, but Shinji moved closer to Rei as carefully as she could. "What is it?"

_Ikari-kun is bolder now that the change has occurred._ Before the boy wouldn't have spoken to her so carefree and supporting, it was nice. "Before the accident," Rei started and stopped. Could she trust Shinji? Part of her wanted nothing else than to tell all her problems to the girl, but her logical side said 'kill her and hide the body' before any sign of weakness was discovered. "Would you have considered us 'friends?' The word felt alien and strange rolling off her tongue.

Now only an arms length away, Shinji stopped and thought about Rei's question. "I would have liked to, but we really didn't talk much outside of Nerv and the few conversations at school. I was always so mystified by you, maybe a little intimidated." How without the throbbing palpitations of her heart, the confusing of lust and emotion, Shinji finally was able to open up to Rei. Connecting on an emotional level was easier for women, none of the pomp and male ego was hindering her. "Maybe we could have said we were friends, maybe we couldn't. But now…I think with your permission we could try."

The tiniest of blushes crested Rei's cheeks, "Are you saying you were attracted to me before and that attraction prevented you from speaking to me?" Rei had seen male/female relations at school before, but never applied it to her own life or situation.

Rubbing her nose, Shinji giggled, "I guess that about sums it up." Where was this confidence coming from! She didn't know, but it didn't feel like a confession to her, no more like bonding with a fellow teammate, not hiding the truth. "Things are strange now for me, and Asuka as well. But between you and me, I think that nothing has changed for the worse." Putting her hand on Rei's shoulder, Shinji was glad when the aloof girl finally met her gaze. "We can be friends, if you want."

Having the body of her life's one biggest aggravation shyly smiling at her while initiating casual contact sent Rei's brain into defensive mode. As her training kicked in to replace the shorted out fuse that was her logic train, Rei grabbed Shinji's arm, spun around and flung the poor girl to the ground. With Shinji prone on his back, Rei quickly pressed her advantage and sat on the girl's stomach and bore down on her fiercely, "What is your intention for such behavior. I am not willing to let you have your way…with…wait." Shinji wasn't a boy, her actions couldn't have been to ease her into a state of weakness to take her in a sexual manner.

As confusion ran rampart in Rei's brain trying to reestablish the Shinji = Girl, Girl = no penis, Shinji's head spun due to the vertigo and having ceramic tile casually brush up against it with mind numbing force. "A-Ayanami…what…you do that for?" Having a naked woman sitting on her chest would have been a fantasy come true three days ago, but now it was just excess weight. "C-could you get off me please?"

"Hey idiot are you coming or what, you've been in here for twenty damn minutes!" Asuka shouted as he walked into the stall area. Sure he promised not to go into the girls side, but this impish notion that seeing naked girls was just the most awesome thing in the world overrode the sensible part of his brain. _And its my body anyway, I should get to look at it whenever I want. _Shaking his drying towel out to fan the mist away, "Shinji you better…not…holy SHIT!" As much as it broke his mind, Little Asuka had just one word to add mentally _SHWIGN! _

Laying on the ground before him was his old body with what appeared to be Ayanami Rei fondling it and both in a very skin tone costume. Without batting an eyelash, Ayanami reflexively groped Shinji's mammary's as he had done in the past and say, "This isn't what it looks like, Ikari-kun and I were discussing the concept of friendship and I mistook her actions as being sexually driven. I over reacted." Squeeze squeeze, _This is an odd sensation, I believe I enjoy doing this to her. Does that mean I might be… _Squeeze, squeeze, squeeze.

"A-A-Ayanami please stop that?" Shinji wasn't taking the stimulation well, nor did she like the psychotic tick her old body was displaying. "Asuka doesn't seem to like seeing you…um…do this. We can talk about things later?"

Before Asuka could say a word, blood erupted from his nose and he ran off. Seeing such a site, while he knew it wasn't really lesbian foreplay, hit the guy switch so hard it cause heavy nasal discharge.

X-X

"Asuka I'm sure that it was exactly as Shinji-kun said it was," Hikari tried to console her friend as the pair walked through the shopping arcade. "I mean until just recently Shinji saw Ayanami as a boy sees a girl. Now that Shinji's changed, her view on things will as well." The whole Ayanami playing with Shinji's breasts had to be an exaggeration though, Hikari couldn't picture the stoic and calm girl groping anything.

Helping himself to the third hamburger, Asuka took a savage bite out of it. "I believe her, just not Ayanami. You didn't see how the freak acted, you going to eat your fries?" Asuka couldn't get the hungry feeling to go away, but with as much as he ate, he didn't gain a single pound! It was just plain awesome. "And now she's off with those two retards doing Kami-sama knows what."

Handing the bottomless pit that her friend had become the fries, Hikari shrugged, "True I didn't see it but, Ayanami never looked at you that way before right? So why think it is anything more than an accident?" Walking into a small boutique Hikari picked up a few garments and held them against her body, "This look good on me?"

Swallowing hard, Asuka coughed painfully as he pictured Hikari in the attire she was holding. Having walked into a shop that specialized in undergarments, Asuka was coming close to hemorrhaging. "Y-yeah you'd look good in it." Little Asuka added how nice she'd look getting out of it. "Uh, Hikari why did you bring me here?" Asuka asked as he saw several of the store clerks looking at the pair and whispering behind covered hands. Several other patrons were giggling at the pair as Hikari continued to hold the lacy piece of material against her body.

"What do you mean, we come here at least once a week. You were the one that introduced me to this place," Hikari didn't notice the performance she was putting one. To the other girls in the store, it was a girlfriend modeling for her boyfriend. Why else would a boy be in a store like that with a girl holding naughty bits in front of her. "And answer my question about Ayanami. What gives you any reason to fear?"

A bead of sweat made its way down Asuka's cheek as she hunted for the nearest exit. Seeing all the options girls had, Asuka couldn't help but picture Misato, Shinji, Hikari, Ayanami, Ritsuko all parading around in them. _Cold…cold thoughts…icebergs, frozen waffles, Shinji's dad…that did it. _With himself in control, "Hikari can we continue this conversation outside or do want all these people to think I'm sticking it to you?" he said in a curt whisper.

"Sticking what to…" Hikari dropped the teddy she was holding grabbed Asuka's hand and made a hasty retreat to the entrance. Mortified at what she had done so casually, Hikari's heart was beating between her ears. _I bought a boy with me into a lingerie store and modeled for him. _Sure inside was the mind of her best friend, but said best friend was drooling a little and his eyes were rapidly scanning her body. "Asuka…ASUKA!" Hikari yelled and snapped her fingers in Asuka's face.

Having the fantasy of Hikari's little show going deeper and in a more private setting rudely interrupted by reality, Asuka cleared his throat. "Sorry about that Hikari, still don't have everything in control yet. Men aren't as simple as I thought they were." Not when the damn loins constantly overrode the brain. "As for Ayanami, no she never gave me any indication that she was a crotch muncher."

"ASUKA! I'm shocked at you! How could you say such an offensive remark," Hikari huffed and crossed her arms. Seriously having a male Asuka was starting to become strange…er. "While I don't really agree with the practice, you could at least respect there wishes and not call them such strange and vulgar names."

Nodding, "Yeah, you're right Hikari, sorry." Apologizing was quickly becoming Asuka's forte. It made the women he interacted with back down and move on so fast. _Maybe that's why Shinji did it so often. Hikari just gets so hard to handle if I get her made, but apologizing calms her right down. _But of course that wasn't the case when Shinji used to apologize to her, not at all. "But no, I don't think Ayanami swings that way. Just looked really ho…t."

"Pervert," Hikari's grin betrayed the comments impact. "You really are a perverted little boy at times Asuka." Seeing him so squeamish was cute, and Hikari was finding it was really easy to forget that Asuka was a girlfriend and not just a temporary boy. "Want to see a movie?"

To embarrassed to talk, Asuka just let himself be led away by the partially glowing Hokari. The warm and smooth hand holding his was a nice change, and the promise of the tasty theatre food was more than enough to get him to tag alone. _That and being alone with that tasty dish isn't a bad idea either, we are friends after all…why not friends with benefits? _Little Asuka was whispering into Asuka's brain.

X-X

Since when did coming to the arcade result in such utter boredom? Shinji wanted that question answered and responded to in triplicate and in her hand by the end of the day. Somehow blasting the crap out of pixilated enemies wasn't as fun as it had been. Touji and Kensuke were having a field day with the new 'full emersion' shooter, complete with VR goggles and light gun, but she was just bored. "How are you guys doing?"

Spinning to this left, and not so gingerly plowing into Kensuke, Touji was having a field day! "This game is just freaking awesome! Did you see that guy I just got Kensuke! His head flew about twenty yards!" No other game got the sheer goriness as 'House of the Resident Evil Zombie 3'. "You sure you don't want to try again Shinji?"

Head wobbly due to the light gun smack, Kensuke almost fell over, "Yeah I can lend you some cash if you're out." A first in Kensuke's life, offering to lend somebody video game money, it didn't hurt that the offered was a smoking hot pistol. "You can take one of our places if you want," whoever was replaced would then watch the other 'accidentally' fall into Shinji. Asuka would have beaten them into smears on the pavement, but Shinji wouldn't.

"That's ok guys, think I'm going to go try the UFO catcher game, never played it before," she said with disinterest. Before all the game had was stupid plush toys, now they looked cuter and Shinji really wanted one. "Come get me when you're done?" Hearing no direct reply, Kensuke was spouting off about how the headshot took the eyeball with it, Shinji just hoped they wouldn't take to long. Moving from noisy machine to noisy machine, she eventually reached the small offshoot of UFO catchers where the bevy of neglected girlfriends hung out while their boyfriends indulged there inner man.

It hadn't taken Shinji long to adapt to the purse Asuka lent, where a skirt meant no pockets and that was a real bitch. Taking some change out of her coin purse, Shinji felt uneasy as the other girls around her started gossiping to themselves and wandered off. They were jealous, jealous of Shinji's looks and the way she carried herself was almost regal and brought many of said boyfriends' eyes to her posterior. "I hope this ends soon, Asuka is better at handling this than I am."

Picking out a cute little plush dog, Shinji began the task in exuberance to liberate it from its plastic jail. The first time she missed, the second the connection wasn't good enough to free it from the plush confines of its brethren. "I'm not good at this," she muttered but it was still fun all the same. That was until she felt a hand on her shoulder. Turning around she saw three boys she'd never seen before standing behind her.

"Excuse me miss, you seem to be having a little trouble," the center one spoke but left his hand on her shoulder. "Want some assistance?" Suzuki Inabaki and his little click of friends had been watching this girl with interest the moment she separated from the two boys she had arrived with. Such beauty was hard to come by, and the red head had it in spades. "I can get that for you."

Keiichi Otori, one of Suzuki's portly underlings ribbed the boy next to him, "Yeah he can get ya whatever you want." Receiving the evil eye from his boss, Keiichi choicely shut his jowls and left them closed. It was a song and dance the trio had done many times before to a general success. Get the girl's trust, take her out, and after a few songs at the karaoke bar, slip the petty thing something in her drink. She wakes up a little sore but none the less for wear and she never sees them again. Whatever lie she tells herself about what happened perfectly fine with them. But the truth was if a girl went with them, she only had herself to blame for the consequences of trusting strangers.

"No thank you, I'm having fun trying myself," Shinji offered them a polite bow and turned back to the machine. She wasn't stupid, Asuka had told her time and time again to be weary of men approaching, that they'd offer her things to get her to lower her guard. But they seemed nice, well the leader and he wasn't hard on the eyes in any respect. _But I'm not gay! I'm…just not a guy right now…but then why does he still look cute! _It was madden to see men and be attracted, she knew why it happened, but she didn't have to like it.

Loving the sport more than the kill, Suzuki wasn't put off by the initial rejection. It would only make the victory taste better. Leaning against the machine next to Shinji's he quipped, "Oh don't be that way, I just want to help is all." Pulling a token from his pocket, "Bet I can get it for you in one try? But if I do I think you can favor us with a small trip to the karaoke bar down the way, even bring your friends." Never act as if you're going to sever connections, let them know that you know they're not alone and that's perfectly fine.

Reluctantly stepping away from the machine, Shinji just wanted the boys to leave her alone. If that meant letting them swagger and try and impress her, so be it. "I'm trying to get the dog," she pointed to the dopy canine toy. But as she moved, an oh so casual hand slid across her backside, nothing she could say was intentional but she knew. Black wings started beating inside her mind, telling her to run back to Touji and Kensuke, but the other two boys were already in strategic places behind her. Pulling her arms to her stomach, Shinji was having second thoughts about staying vs forcing her way past the inconspicuous human shield.

True to his word, Suzuki plucked the dog from the retrieval bin and handed it to his fair damsel. "Here you are my dear," she even smelled perfect. This was going to be fun, a girl that could be a model with the such feminine characteristics, he could almost taste the thrill of stealing her virginity. "Now for your part of the bargain," his hand was already on her shoulder turning her around. "Keiichi, go get her friends."

"But I…never said I would…" Shinji was terrified! This boy was bigger than she was by far, she could scream but her body was refusing the action. "I don't really want to…" the toy was heavy in her arms. _Where are you guys! _She cried out mentally as the boy continued to slowly drive her to the promenade. Asuka would have beaten the boy into the ground by now, but Shinji didn't know such skills. All she knew was she didn't want to go but was powerless to stop. "I think I'd rather not go."

Pulling Shinji in closer, "I don't even know your name darling, you can't leave before telling me that much right? I'm Takamichi," it was the fake name he'd always used when out on the prowl. He wasn't looking for a girlfriend, just another tally mark on his belt.

"S-Shinji," she muttered as a spasm that almost would have freed her resulted in him grabbing her tighter. She didn't like this, not at all, "Could you let me go please?"

Trembling like a leaf! That wasn't going to do, she'd never relent if he kept up this play. Letting her free but not out of reach, "Sorry, just I'm so enraptured by you. I really just want to get to know you better. Sorry if I cam on to strong. Forgive me?" he extended his hand and bowed his head low. Some girls liked the forceful hand, others needed to be lulled by fake gentlemanly charm. _From the look of her I would have thought she'd have fallen for the more manly guys. _

"That's ok, it was nice meeting you. But I really should be getting back to my friends now," her voice was still soft and meek. "Maybe some other time?" A lie and she knew it, Shinji never wanted to see these guys again, not when she knew what they were really after. _Asuka said to be careful of guys like this, I never thought it was true what he said. _As a boy, Shinji never had inclination to do such things, or heard of anybody that did. But Shinji knew that if she was alone with this boy, it wasn't going to end well.

"What the FUCK are you doing to my friend?" Touji yelled and all but threw Suzuki off of Shinji's arm. "And don't tell me she was coming on to you, dick, cause I know she never would." Hell she was really a boy so it would have been stranger if Shinji had. Touji saw the way Shinji had been standing, saw most of the interplay between the two on his way back to his machine from the bathroom. Touji saw red. Shoving the boys shoulder again, "Just get the fuck out of here alright?"

Holding up his hands in defeat, Suzuki and his posse left without a word. Protective boyfriends weren't worth the hassle when other more vulnerable girls were around.

"He didn't hurt your or anything did he?" Touji turned to Shinji and leaned over to look her in the eye. The audacity of some people! Who knows what would have happened if he hadn't seen what he did. "S-Shinji?" Touji didn't like the look on Shinji's face. Eyes were turning glassy and her lips were quivering.

"You bastard!" she called out weakly as she pulled him into a hug as fearful tears crested, "I was so afraid, but you weren't even here!" But he was now, he chased the pricks off before anything could happen. "Jerk."

Now this was something Touji had no idea how to deal with. An attractive woman was hugging him close, but said girl was controlled by the mind of his male friend. She was crying and scared, but still felt very nice. Hugging her back lightly, Touji just pretended not to notice how he liked it. "Sorry ma…Shinji. Was an accident."

X-X

Sitting on the couch, Misato already laying in bed, Asuka stared at the television, through the television, without seeing a thing. What had he DONE! Without provocation, without warning, during the movie to kissed Hikari and felt her up! And to make matters worse she enjoyed it! "I am never going to live this down," he said to himself.

The scene played over in his mind again and again. The two of them were sitting there sharing a bag of popcorn watching a movie Asuka had wanted to see last week. A cheesy chick flick he lost interest in after twenty minutes. Then he started watching Hikari, and occasionally leaning in to whisper snide comments about the movie. Hikari would laugh and rock in her seat giving Asuka a tantalizing view as the girl arched and weaved. Oh man she was pretty. During one of the pseudo romantic moments in the movie, Asuka saw Hikari turn and look at him.

The gaze lasted only a few moments but Asuka got lost in it, he forgot that this was the girl that he had painted toenails with, complained about swimwear with, and talked about how boys sucked so hard that the women should rise up against them and take control of the planet. For now she was a pretty girl, and he wanted to kiss her, and he did. Hormones pumped through his body so hard and fast his brain didn't even register the sensation until after it had ended and Hikari said one word that sent shivers down Asuka's spine.

"Shinji," Asuka mouthed. Hikari had actually called out that bastards name, sure he was in Shinji's body, but Hikari had to know it was actually Asuka. So why did Hikari call out Shinji. It was confusing, the act and the aftermath. So upset at what Hikari, eyes half laden almost begging for another, that Asuka stormed out of the theater in disgust. "Does she like Shinji or was she just confused."

Needless to say, Asuka had no plans to see romantic movies with Hikari again. That is unless Hikari wanted to go with Asuka and not Shinji's body. "I don't even know how it happened. I mean yeah I like Hikari in all but…to actually…I am NOT a lesbian!" And he wasn't, it was perfectly fine for a boy to kiss a girl and not be a lesbian. Some people say that if you're best friends with your lover that you've found the perfect mate. "But she's not by best friend…my best girl friend maybe but…"

As much as he fought with her, made fun of her, antagonized her…Asuka thought of Shinji as her best friend. Sure they didn't get along all the time, mostly due to him, but when they were together it just clicked. He could talk to Shinji, let himself be pampered but not feel weak or subdued. He didn't want to kiss Hikari, he wanted to kiss…

"Sorry to barge in like this," Touji announced his presence holding the still noticeably troubled Shinji. "Shinji gave me the key and she's…" he nodded his head towards the red head in his arms. Cringing back as Asuka leapt over the couch and speedily advanced, Touji pulled Shinji closer to him, "Before you say anything about this, let her explain. I won't bother trying to, not with you like that."

Standing on one crooked and one flex leg, Asuka cracked his knuckles, "Better get talking Shinji, and if I don't like the answer you'll have some serious issues." He tried to rain in his frustrations and anger, but they were all just so heavy that it was too hard. _This is why he acted the way he did with me…I'm just not able to control myself sometimes! _But he was now, even though he was angry he wasn't attacking, his thoughts were actually calm.

Flinging from Touji's arms into Asuka's, Shinji let out a fresh torrent of sobs. "These guys…at the arcade. They tried…they were going to…they acted nice but I could tell that they were going too…" Burying her face into the crook of Asuka's neck, Shinji let the warmth wash over her. It was different than with Touji, Shinji was friends with Touji, but with Asuka it was protection. Since the change Shinji had seen Asuka as her protector. At school, at Nerv, and even at home Asuka was different now, looking out for her. "I was so scared that I couldn't do anything."

His anger dissipated as vapor in the morning sun, Asuka embraced Shinji and glowered at Touji. "Where were you when this happened?" Shinji's hiccupping was causing a small problem, breasts rubbing against his stomach wasn't something Asuka was ready for. "Well, aren't you her friend? Weren't you supposed to be keeping an eye on her, or was that to much to ask." Absently his hand was combing its way through Shinji's lavish hair.

Touji knew that look! He had it before himself! Asuka was furious but not about some wrong that became himself. No Asuka was in 'big brother' mode, something Touji knew all to well about. "Look, we were playing a simulator, she said she was going to play the UFO catchers, how were we to know somebody would try and drag her off. Shit Shinji should have easily been able to get away from them."

Oh how Touji wished he could take that line back. The moment it left his lips, Asuka freed himself from Shinji's embrace and slammed his fist into Touji's stomach. Grabbing the wincing boy by the hair, he yanked back so Touji got a good view of Shinji. "Does that look like a warrior to you? What part of Shinji screams out fighter? You know him better than anybody save me, and you're going to tell me some bullshit story that Shinji could have 'easily' fended for herself?"

"A-Asuka stop, you're hurting him," Shinji reached out for her friend, tears dried and replaced with concern. "He's right too. Before today he'd have had no reason to fear for my safety. He just forgot…we all forget." She would have said more, but Asuka shoved Touji free and walked back to her, taking her hands and leading her towards the kitchen. With a fleeting look at Touji, Shinji hoped Touji knew she was sorry.

Hand holding the spot Asuka tried to pull his liver out from, Touji stood as erect as he could and hobbled to the door. "See you at school tomorrow," his voice echoed in the apartment, nobody responded. Dejected and confused, Touji walked home with phantom touches of Shinji's body alive on his body. _Holy shit I'm falling for female Shinji…this is just plain wrong._

Back in the apartment, Asuka tended to her friend. "Now, now, just calm down. You're fine, I'm sure if things had gotten worse you would have gotten free somehow. Don't worry." Setting the recovering heroine at the table, Pen-Pen nervously approaching the girl who gladly pet him, Asuka rifled through the refrigerator. "Hot chocolate used to calm me down when I was having a bad day, no reason to think it won't do the same for you."

Nodding Shinji just watched as Asuka made her a drink, listened to the story again in full, this time with no tears, and then took the empty cup to the sink. He was a good person, somebody she could depend on, and the only person on the planet that had any idea about what she was going through. As Asuka stood outside her door, Shinji thanked him, held his hand for the briefest of moments and shut the door. Heart ready to leap out of her chest.

X-X

Author Notes

Yeah this is more of a serious chapter compared to the mad-camp humor of the last two. I like to mix my drama and humor for max effect. To much of one tends to leave it stagnant and boring. But mix them well and you have a story that never gets boring. Hope you liked it

Ja Mata

Zentrodie (zentrodie-dot-geo-at-yahoo-dot-com)


	4. Chapter 4

Standard Disclaimer

Guh I feel so dead today, and I'm so close with the novel but the current part is dragging so…I'm here ^_^ Hope you enjoy

X-X

It Can't Get Worse

Chapter – 4

"What are we going to do about Shinji?" Touji asked. Walking into the classroom, the morning sun streaming through the windows illuminating dust particles floating around, Touji noticed only Hikari was there. After he dropped Shinji off, Touji had taken a long walk around town to think about his latest development. For two hours he walked and thought how pissed he had been at those other boys, how hurt he felt inside at Shinji being angry at him, and how he wanted to make it up to him. Calling Kensuke after he got home, Touji demanded the boy show up early for school to discuss it. "I mean we can't let shit like yesterday happen again."

Letting out a big yawn and giving Hikari a weak wave, Kensuke nodded. "I know what you mean. She just wandered off and next thing you know she's almost being drug off by some other guys." Having not seen the events transpire, Kensuke wasn't fully in the know as Touji kept some of the more 'personal' elements secret. "But are you thinking we shouldn't go out with her until this whole mess gets fixed?" Taking his seat, Kensuke felt a pang of unease settle in, he didn't want to change things. He liked going out with Touji and Shinji and hanging out, it made life bearable.

Spinning his desk around, Touji sat facing Kensuke. Spying Hikari, who was staring blankly off at the door, Touji was nervous about talking with her around. She could tell Asuka about what they were talking about, and after suffering his wrath already Touji wasn't going anywhere near him again. Voice low, "I don't know, but we have to do something about her."

"We could always have one of us keep an eye on her, until she gets turned back," Kensuke offered. Keeping an eye on Shinji would be easy, she was very easy on the eyes right now. "You know like when we go out we see guys typically attached to their girlfriends," he offered. They both knew what that little moved signified. It was a latent animal instinct of protecting your woman from the men that would steal her. "Like pretend to be her boyfriend or something, that way the other guys will back off."

Eyes widening, Touji couldn't keep the small grin from showing, oh he really liked that idea. "Unlike Asuka, Shinji's to timid to scare off guys so if I pretend to be her boyfriend they'll leave her alone!" It was perfect! He could have his cake and eat it too…_Wait I can't seriously be thinking this! _ It was wrong to think of Shinji in that light! She wasn't always going to be a girl, what would happen after she turned back.

"Why does it have to be you? Why can't I be the one?" Kensuke retorted with more emotion than intended. It was his idea, why shouldn't he get the staring role. Maybe if another girl saw him with such a hottie they'd wonder why and make a move in. "It was my idea, I should get to do it."

Trying to rein in his confusion, fighting against his wonderings and fantasies, Touji waved his hand quickly dismissingly. "I was just saying man, both of us could, but just not at the same time." Thinking of Shinji in a romantic light was starting to really worry the jock. Sure Shinji was smoking hot, perfect in so many ways it made Touji ache to see her upset, but Shinji wasn't really a girl! She wasn't always going to be the babe so what happened after that? "Just when one of us is away the other fills the role or something."

"Ah, I got you. If Shinji and I go to the movies or something I will do it, or if she and you go out to a burger joint it's you. Good idea man, very good." Kensuke calmed. It wasn't the jock playing the 'I'm better than you' card after all. "Still thinking we should ask her about those pictures?" Kensuke asked changing the topic. "I mean it's likely the only chance we'll ever have at getting stuff like that, cause Asuka would never do it."

Various semi-clothed images of Shinji in provocative poses lanced through Touji's mind and seared his core. "D-Dude are you sure that's a good idea, pictures of Shinji? She's our friend, it'd be creepy!" But having them would be a very nice thing too, a memento of this freaky little science experiment. _Yeah, a reminder that it happened because when Asuka's back to normal it's back to pain city. _

Quick to spy Hikari, and the few other students now filing in, Kensuke hushed Touji. "Keep it down or somebody will hear you! Until we get the goods its not a good idea to let our plan get out." His eyebrow rising ever so slightly, Kensuke wasn't sure why Touji was so adverse to this, sure Shinji was a buddy but it wasn't like she was going to say no. "She'll want these to man, just think about when she gets her old body back, he'd be pissed at missing the opportunity!"

He couldn't argue against that one way or the other, it was Shinji's decision after all. "We could ask, I guess. It is up to her, but if Asuka ever found out we'd all be dead." With a clear picture of the pure rage in Asuka's eyes last night, the protectiveness in his actions, Touji was not going to cross him. "Well after they switch back anyway, don't think Asuka would be to found of breaking his own body."

Catching sight of the gender bending duo coming through the door, Shinji bashfully walking away from her stalwart protector, Kensuke waved here over. "How's it going Shinji? After you two left yesterday I was worried about you." Kensuke opted to try and start smoothly and work his way up to asking about the photo shoot.

Across the room, Asuka made the long and arduous trek to his desk and the waiting Hikari. While he was starting to better control his hormones, he had no issues with keeping Little Asuka down this morning, he was still unsure how to handle Hikari. "Hey Hikari, h-how are you today?" he managed to say as he plopped down. _Why is she looking at me like that…almost as if she…oh hell._

The fierce and diligent class representative, smiled casually at her friend and batted her eyelashes. "I'm good Asuka, and you can relax I'm not angry at you for stealing my first kiss." Hikari could see the fear melt away from Asuka as she spoke. "Both of us just got caught up in the moment and for a second I forgot." The movie had been so touching, and it made Hikari reflect on her own love life or lack there of. Touji had factored pretty heavily in her heart, having known him for so long but Hikari had to admit Shinji had been very easy on the eyes too. Combined with her friendship for Asuka and the movie upping her emotions, it was a storm that just hit. "It just happened."

Blushing and feeling stupid for thinking so deeply on it, Asuka rubbed the back of his head. "Are you sure? I mean you always talked about how you wanted your first one to be special and I just kinda…well you know." Asuka couldn't say it aloud, say that not only had he kissed his friend deeply he also felt her up and found out Hikari had a very small chest. "If you're angry and just saying this to make me feel better I'll never forgive you."

Putting her hand on Asuka's shoulder, Hikari's eyes narrowed, "I mean it, Asuka. I could have pushed you off me, made you stop, but at the time it was just such shock." A very pleasant shock, but a shock nonetheless Having never been kissed, Hikari hadn't been ready for how intimate it was, then the cupping of her best, how Asuka had known exactly what to do, "but I have to ask you something Asuka," Hikari realized that Asuka had been VERY good at it meaning only one thing.

Letting out a sigh of relief, Asuka sank heavily into his chair. He had been so worried he destroyed a very good friendship over a few moments of carnal bliss. "If you're going to ask me to another movie, it better be an action film this time," he said with a smile. He was not going to be alone with Hikari again, Hikari with her bookish good looks and very kissable lips. _Down boy…down…not now in fact never again will you do that with her. Steady…steady…gone. _Much better, controlling Little Asuka was getting much easier as long as he kept a steady effort to not let it get the upper hand.

Peeking back and forth, Hikari leaned in close and got a good whiff of Asuka's scent, a soft and reassuring one. _Remember you told yourself you won't do that again unless he tells you he can never get his old body back. _Like Touji, Hikari had been beside herself with mixed up feelings. The kiss with Asuka had been nice, extraordinarily nice, and it made her reevaluate things about her relationship with Asuka. Hikari wasn't going to pursue the boy, not until it was a lock that he'd not be going back to the XX brand soon. Whispering, "With how you touched me…you had a lot of skill…does that mean when you maste…"

"I WILL NOT POSE IN LEWD PHOTOS FOR YOU! YOU PIG!" Shinji's shrill voice echoed through the room followed by the thunderclap that was her palm connecting with Kensuke's face. It wasn't the hardest slap he'd ever received, but what hurt most was how Shinji got up and ran out. All he had done was ask for a few pictures be replicated from a porn mag he had, one that Shinji now had curled up in her dainty fingers. _Honestly asking me to pose like…like that! _Shinji unfurled the magazine again showing a very attractive woman with her legs spread eagle with one hand to her breast and the other in a very naughty place that Shinji tried not to think about. _I can't do that…Asuka would kill me when he found out! _But as much as she tried to deny it, Shinji couldn't fight the curiosity off.

She knew what it felt like as a boy, how was it different for a girl.

X-X

If Misato had ever been told that one day she'd be having a conversation about relationships with Ayanami Rei she'd ask them what they were smoking and how she could score some. Reality always has to throw the curve ball though. "Rei are you sure you want to talk to me about this? Don't you have friends or something at school, or consolers or something?" Misato relationships weren't that great so she didn't feel comfortable telling Rei what to do. _Hell most of my boyfriends were just guys I thought looked hot at the time, not the best advice to give. _

Standing in her plugsuit, irritated at a second day at Ritsuko tests due to Gendo's request to insure one functioning Eva was assured, Rei just shook her head. "The number of friends I have is limited to Shinji, and as she is part of issue seeking her assistance would not be prudent." The testing room was thankfully vacant, the tech's off for lunch the moment Rei's sync test ended, Rei had sought Misato's aid.

"But why me, Rei? Of all the people you could go to," Misato almost said Commander Ikari's name but sagely kept her mouth shut. Misato believed Gendo had the relationship experience equal to Shinji making the man worthless for Rei to consult. "Its not that I won't help you, I just…" wasn't really keen on the idea of Rei and Shinji being an item, not now anyway.

Noticing many of Misato's visual tells that she was weakening, Rei pressed her request. "Of all the people at my disposal, your experience and skill are the most appropriate for my needs." Lies were easy to use once you got past all the moral debate, and Rei had no moral qualms with lying to get her answers. "So will you assist me?"

Eying the door, debating if making a run for it would just stall the inevitable or if Rei would give up, Misato remember who she was dealing with. Rei would follow her to the gates of hell waiting for a yes or no response. Lowering her head in defeat, "Sure, Rei, tell me what's going on and I'll try and help you." It wasn't Misato's day.

Not wasting a moment, having fully expected Misato go cave in eventually, Rei recounted her quandary. "Yesterday in the showers, Ikari-kun touched my shoulder after she said we should try being friends officially." A warmth spread in her stomach at recounting that. "However in my confusion I threw her to the floor and questioned her motives."

Leaning back in her chair, Misato winced at the detailing of the encounter, "That had to hurt." But why would Rei be confused about an offer of friendship? "So what made you think Shinji had something up her sleeve so to speak. And on a side note aren't you the least bit uneasy with her showering with you? She was a boy and hopefully will be one again soon, seeing you naked like that should have some concerns." Hell Shinji actively walking into a shower with another girl was something Misato had to tease about now.

"To address your question, Ikari-kun has seen me nude as a boy already so her seeing me now is of no concern," Rei was puzzled when Misato's jaw dropped. At the time though, Rei didn't give two shits if Shinji's head exploded or if he ran away. Shinji had just been a minor annoyance in life, now however if Shinji were to see her as a boy, a blush spread. "As for why I acted as I did, I do not have a solid answer, and that is one of the reasons I'm coming to you."

Misato's game plan was thrown off track so far it was in a different area code. "So you and Shinji have seen each other naked before yesterday? Are you two seeing each other?" While it was true Misato didn't pay the closest attention to Shinji, but she would be damned if Shinji and Rei had been bumping uglies before the accident. "And now that Shinji is a girl you're worried about her feelings for you?" Maybe that's what this 'friend' thing was, Rei didn't want a friend she wanted her lover.

The illusion in Misato's brain was destroyed almost as soon as it was formed as Rei corrected her. "No, prior to yesterday it was only Ikari-kun who saw me naked. It was when she gave me my new card. I was getting out of the shower." Rei censored herself here, she didn't feel the need to inform Misato what Shinji had done to get her reaction as even now it confused her. "He tripped and fell on me, groped my chest, and that was all. We are not currently seeing each other."

Saying several prayers to whatever deity was listening, Misato was never so happy to hear about somebody NOT having sex. Pregnant pilots weren't in her scenario for saving the world. "Well that's something I'll have to talk to her about later, as for your action…have you thought that maybe you DO like Shinji in more than a friendly way?" In her mind Misato had a mantra repeating over and over: _Please say no! Please say No! PLEASE SAY NO!_

"It is possible. I've little exposure to such stimuli, and would not know for a fact if what I am feeling could be affection," Rei said more to herself than Misato. It would make sense, she often heard the girls at school saying that 'love hit like a hurricane' and that emotions were unstable. Maybe what she felt for Shinji wasn't the want for a friend but somebody to fill the role as significant other. "If that is the case, would it explain my confusion and my enjoyment of messaging her breasts?"

Had Misato been drinking she'd have decorated Rei's face with the beverage, as she wasn't she just fell heavily into a chair with an exasperated sigh. "You did WHAT?" Urge to leave growing, urge to get drunk also growing. "Please tell me THAT was an accident too?"

"It was. After I threw her to the ground, I sat on her chest to keep her from escaping without answering my question." Rei thought it was standard procedure to restrain potential threats until the level of danger could be discerned. "As I sat on her, Soryu came into the stalls, he distracted me, and in my distraction my left hand cupped and continually squeezed Shinji's breast." As Rei had no real concern for her appearance it didn't bother her that Shinji's bust was fuller and firmer than her own. "Where are you going?" she asked as Misato stood up and started walking to the door.

Not stopping, not turning back, Misato just kept walking, "Rei, I can't help you. Maybe you like Shinji and the fact that this body swap thing happened is messing with your head." Sure as hell was messing with Misato's head. "You're best option is to just talk to her about it. But with Shinji female right now its doubtful you'd be in a relationship that was beyond friends."

"What if she was bisexual or a lesbian, if I were as well that would solve the problem if she were never to have the processed reversed," Rei's voice was nothing but logical. She wasn't thinking about rightness or wrongness, she wasn't even thinking about if she actually liked Shinji in that way, she was just analyzing a problem. "But I see your point, I will need to confer with her about this before anything can be done."

Brain fried, Misato left without another word and headed to the galley for something to eat. She did not want the image of Rei and Shinji having some tryst using Asuka's body, or what said German would do if he ever found out. "I want my peaceful life back."

X-X

"Shinji, look I'm sorry about the picture thing ok?" Kensuke pleaded with the still angry vision of beauty. Having a hot girl he knew, while only temporary, angry with him was causing Kensuke no end of frustration. "It was just an idea, something to keep as a memory to this whole thing." Also Kensuke did have the seedling thought that if the change was permanent then maybe…he could get over the eeriness in time.

Not particularly liking her escort home, Asuka was stuck doing clean up with Touji, Shinji was doing her best to ignore the pleading. But unlike Asuka, Shinji had more compassion for Kensuke. "Are you really sorry about asking me to degrade Asuka's body, or just upset that I won't do it?" Why couldn't Section-2 just give her a ride home instead of walking behind her, save her the trouble of Kensuke's begging.

While it was really the latter, Kensuke was smart enough never to even hint at that. "I'm sorry I asked. I wasn't thinking with my head, and you know what that can lead too." He had to hope Shinji realized what was going through both his friends heads…lower and upper. "I mean it sounded like a great idea at the time. Asuka's a beauty, grade triple A hotness. We just thought you'd like a copy after this thing gets reversed." Cause Asuka would never in a million years ever show her goods to anybody in there school.

Now that angered Shinji further. "What are you saying that there was never a chance that Asuka and I could have been…" Damn, that wasn't supposed to come out. But with her emotions flaring it was harder to keep a lid on things. It was harder for her to keep her mouth shut about her feelings now, she just wanted to talk and talk and talk about them.

Kensuke however didn't miss the slip, and accentuated on it. "Fuck man you like Asuka! All this time we have been dogging on the two of you being a married couple and you actually LIKE Asuka?" It was inconceivable! Asuka was a total bitch that rode Shinji's ass every moment, Kensuke couldn't fathom HOW Shinji could WANT that. _Being ordered around is one thing, being treated like dirt is another. _But the hurt expression he was witnessing told him it was true. "Shit, we never knew."

"Its not…" Shinji started and stopped, she wasn't sure what it really was between Asuka and her. "I'm not saying I LIKE Asuka, there is just something about her that…maybe I could see myself with." Lately more than in the past, Shinji was starting to really come to know Asuka and appreciate him more. He wasn't the bastard everybody thought he was, it was just her way of running from things and Shinji could relate. "I mean I have similar feelings for Ayanami too, but it's nothing serious."

Adjusting his glasses, Kensuke didn't know what to say. They HAD expected Shinji and Rei to have something. It was evident in the fact Rei actually talked to Shinji for no reason on occasion. But the Asuka thing was still a ball buster of a surprise. "Alright, regardless of what you feel for Asuka, have you ever thought it might be reciprocated?" Kensuke was seeing an opening, a huge one. Maybe those photos weren't out of the question after all.

"No, not really. But at times he is really nice to me," Shinji looked up from the concrete as she walked. The more she thought about it the more Asuka did seem to be nicer to her than the other guys. _Asuka just doesn't like how I back down all the time. How I run from things. _In a way Asuka's hope for her was a good thing, if Shinji could stop running just imagine what was possible. "And after the accident, he's just been…I don't know…softer to me. Kinder." And it made the fear subside and the days bearable.

Flipping through the magazine, carefully hidden in a text book, Kensuke nodded. "Maybe he's just concerned about his body. Remember this is Asuka you're talking about, the one that used to tear up the classroom when anybody even hinted that 'she's weak'." Not that anybody questioned Asuka as alpha male now, hell some girls were salivating at the sight of him today, Kensuke noticed. "And with how some of the girls in class were eye humping him today, its only a matter of time before he abuses your body by giving up your virginity."

"HE WOULD NOT!" Shinji hollered back, but couldn't deny that more than several idle glances went Asuka's way. It wasn't jealousy she was feeling, it couldn't be, it was his body after all. But something about those looks made Shinji want to grab Asuka and walk home right then and there. "I trust him not to do that…" but how could she? Asuka already proved he would touch Little Asuka, had held the thing over her face days before.

Turning to the page of the voluptuous purple haired woman, who looked enough like Misato that Kensuke could imagine it was her, Kensuke showed it to Shinji. "Ok I give up. But tell me this, can you got back to being a boy before you find out how exactly it feels to do that?" His finger went to the image of the woman self pleasuring herself. "How many men would kill to know how it feels just once? This is a once in a lifetime…hell once in this planets history for a man to know exactly what it feels like to be a woman."

Having the magazine put back into her hands, Shinji wanted to drop it as if it were on fire. "Kensuke I can't…it's a violation of Asuka's privacy and trust." But she did have the tiny wonder in her mind about it. On the few accidental brush ups she had, it was a strange but oddly familiar sensation as when she had done similar as a boy. "I have no doubt in my mind Asuka won't be doing the inverse in my body." He said how much he loathed having a member on a daily basis.

"He can say he won't touch it till he's blue in the face…but when something else turns blue then we'll see the truth," Kensuke said with a wisdom of having been there. The geek knew Asuka would break, all men broke after a long period of being pent up. With all the sexually driven media attacking their brains on a daily basis it was only a matter of time. "Just think about it. How long did you used to last before you had to shoot one off?"

Offering the porn back, only to have Kensuke push it back into her hands, Shinji looked at her apartment forebodingly. She was going to be alone most of the day most likely, and Kensuke had a very valid point. "I'm heading up, thanks for the walk home," she said weakly as she opened the door and dodged Kensuke's question. When she finally got into her apartment, she leaned against the door. While she wasn't proud of her actions as a boy, she was able to stave off the beast of lust for about three weeks before the tight fitting plugsuits and Misato's teasing got the best of her. "Asuka is stronger though right?"

X-X

"So why are you hiding in my office?" Ritsuko asked. Standing with her hand on the doorknob, the bottle blond was shocked to find Misato hiding behind her desk in her locked office. "I'm not even going ask how you got in, but it better be for a good reason." Running test after test on Ayanami and the dummy plug due to the little accident she caused left the doctor more than a little tired.

"Ayanami," Misato said with a shuddered sigh, raspy and broken. "She stared asking me questions about Shinji and Asuka and relationships and I just needed a place to hide." It didn't strike her how much she cared about Shinji as a surrogate child until Rei talked to her. Hearing that Shinji coped a feel, was naked with girls, and finally Ayanami's 'lesbian or bi' comments just frazzled her brain beyond the operating capacity.

Being the compassionate and selfless person she was Ritsuko asked, "So?" What was the big deal, teenagers were balls of hormones and thankfully Ayanami couldn't get pregnant so it didn't matter who, where, or even what she had relations with. Ritsuko could care less mainly because if Rei died she'd just pull out another and the process could begin again. "Just give her a pamphlet about 'this is your body' or something and call it a day. Hell a porno would answer just about any question she'd have."

A meaty slam accompanied Misato's skull bouncing off Ritsuko's desk. Her hand that was supporting her chin fell away as did her sense of reality. "You didn't just say to give Rei a porno did you? How the hell would that solve anything?" Children weren't ready for sex at fourteen! Rei was odd yes, but to just send the girl off with the notion that what you saw in a porn was fine was just plain negligent! "This is a serious problem, Ritsuko. It seems Rei has some feelings for Shinji…or Asuka…or something because she just said how much she liked playing with Shinji's chest!"

"I had fun with yours in college and that doesn't make me a lesbian," Ritsuko counted as she rounded her desk. Opening a drawer on the side she grabbed a bottle of water and some aspirin. "The pilots are teenagers and spend a lot of time together, go figure something like this would happen." And the fact that Rei was a semi-clone of Shinji's mom didn't really matter too much, right? _Hell if Shinji stays in Asuka's body its no ethical dilemma is it. _

Not lifting her head up, Misato just ground her forehead deeper into the green felt place holder. "This is serious Ritsuko, we were in college and way to drunk that night anyway!" Another reason Misato didn't fully want to talk about relationships. "Please just tell me you made some progress with reversing this thing so I can go back to worrying about a pregnant Rei instead of two dead pilots. Because Asuka would kill Shinji AND Rei if he found out Shinji 'polluted her pristine body' or some shit like that."

Popping the pills into her mouth and taking a swig of her water, Ritsuko hoped the pain in her back would go away. "With all the testing I've been doing with the Eva's I've had little to no time to work on it. Maya's mostly been doing some calculations about it and they don't look good." Looking at the bottle, Ritsuko took two more pills. "Its that damn angelic remnant that is going to be the problem. It triggered an immunoresponse from the Eva and replicating that is going to take a miracle."

"Don't tell me that, I don't think I could handle this much longer," Misato moaned into the desk. Things were complex before, but at least it was a simple type of complexity. Just keeping her pronouns correct now was maddening, let alone seeing people she'd come to understand acting totally different. "All I need now is for Asuka and Shinji to start something together and that would put the cherry on the fucked-up Sunday!"

Giggling a little, Ritsuko hoped up on her desk and patted Misato's head. "Now that would be odd. Just imagine kissing yourself. Have to envy Asuka a little though," Ritsuko said with whimsy.

Her head finally picking up, chin to desktop, "Why the hell should we envy him right now? Because I for one see nothing to be the slightest jealous about."

"Oh come on now, haven't you ever wondered what it felt like to be a man?" Kami-sama knew Ritsuko fantasized about it. Enough that she bought a special little toy, but that was a tale for later and a very drunken Misato. "I mean, lets be honest, both of us have had more than one man fail us, but they look like they're on top of the world when it happened." It wasn't a great secret that both of them in their youth had indulged in the wonders of flesh.

Sitting up in Ritsuko's chair, Misato was catching on, "I guess it would be nice to be on the side that always finished instead of having more than a few races end far to early." But it wasn't something Misato ever really wondered about. "Good thing though that Asuka won't be doing any experimenting. He curses his little friend about five times a day right now, I doubt he even looks at it."

"Give it time, he's inquisitive and young, both of them," Ritsuko's smiled faded. "I just pray that when it gets the better of them the other doesn't find out or heaven forbid walk in on the other." Ritsuko shuddered, her mother walked in on her at that age and for a week after couldn't look the woman in the face. Asuka however, if he found Shinji exploring would kill her, Shinji would likely faint if the other happened.

"You have a point Ritsuko, I pray it never comes to that," Misato's eyes unfocused and she sighed again. It was inevitable that something would happen, she just prayed it was her that had the unpleasantness to walk in and not one of the other pilots.

The fates were not going to be kind however.

X-X

Author Notes

Lil less on the funny and more laying plot points. Trying to curve things back in and have the pair of cross-gendered children start to come to terms with the change and take control over it…hope you enjoyed.

Ja Mata

Zentrodie


	5. Chapter 5

Standard Disclaimer

Work still kicking me in the face and telling me to love it so another fanfiction chapter it is. I stress out when I write the novel cause I try to make it 'really good' and with this stuff I just go and have fun. I'm betting you're all upset to hear that ^_^

X-X

It Can't Get Any Worse

Chapter – 5

If things could get any worse, Misato would have rather ate a bullet from her gun than try and coordinate this mission. She didn't know what happened, but something transpired between her gender bending wards and they weren't talking about it. They weren't talking to each other or anybody else for that matter. The air in the room chilled when both of them were in it together and Misato always opted to make a strategic retreat. "I should have sorted this shit out before now."

Fingers dancing across the keyboard so fast that many of the men around her fell in love, Ritsuko huffed out hard and blew the strands of hair out of her eye. "You damn right you should have done something before now! How the hell could you let this go on knowing that this could happen!" A zebra ball was floating slowly across her monitor and the Magi were arguing with each other over what it was. One thought it was an angel, Two thought it was a beach ball, and three thought it was a metaphorical symbol of manhood. "We have a situation here and it's worse because two of our pilots appear to HATE each other!"

Ever the apple polisher, Makoto added his two cents to the conversation making it worth a stick of gum. "Well at least Ayanami and Ikari appear to be fine together." When he saw Misato whirl on him, Makoto's head bounced from the intense hatred lanced his way. Making a tactical retreat, the lonely techy muttered to himself that, "just trying to help."

Turning back to Ritsuko, not commenting on Makoto's little dialogue which had Shigeru mocking his friend, Misato tossed her hair over her shoulder. "Look, I didn't want to get between them right now. Both of them are having issues with this whole business and Maya's lack of progress isn't helping!" Misato ended her spiel by hooking her index finger at the mousy girl to Ritsuko's left.

Patting Maya's shoulder, "There there Maya the bad woman didn't mean it. She's got her head so deep in a bottle she doesn't know we're fighting a war for our very survival. A war where children are the weapons and she oh so brightly left two of the three out for blood." Had Ritsuko actually LOOKED at Maya or had any inflection in her voice, maybe it would have calmed the girl. But as Ritsuko said it so dryly, as if off a teleprompter, it just saddened the girl more. "More to the point…ANGEL Misato…ANGEL. Maybe we can worry about how you're committing the most elaborate suicide ever later, provided there is a later."

From his position in the primbox, Gendo was enjoying the show. "There are times I am glad I don't have any interaction with the pilots." He just lorded over all of them like a demi-god and reaped the rewards of being the most powerful man in Tokyo-3. "But this business between the 2nd and 3rd could complicate the scenario."

Kozo, the ever loyal right hand man, balked at the gross under emphasis his long-ago rival just muttered. "Having your son become an attractive German and said German in Yui's child's body, I would think would make things more than a little complex." Why did Yui have to choose this man as her living advocate? The plan that Yui and he created was so complex it needed somebody that could think, and Gendo wasn't that man. Yes he was a great patsy who followed orders perfectly, blinded by his love for Yui, but the man was a walking hard-on most of the time.

"Did you just call my daughter attractive old man?" Gendo's eyebrow rose a fraction of an inch. "Do I have to keep tabs on you so you don't…" he joked but with his control over his voice Gendo sounded dead serious.

"Of for fucks sake, this is serious Gendo!" Kozo said a little too loud and got several eyes up on him from the pit below. Coughing sweating a little in embarrassment, he took a breath. "The scenario didn't have any of this in it, it could throw the whole thing out of order and then we'll have SEELE to deal with!" Kozo wanted the obedient man to follow Yui's plan and reinvent the world, not play little games.

More like his son than anybody ever knew, Gendo backed down. "We have people working on it. The scenario isn't off, not if you interpret it differently." Gendo was following his wife's orders to the letter, just the letter was vague. "And I'm sure having an attractive," he eyed Kozo carefully after his ribbing, "daughter won't upset Yui to much. We just have to have faith in the strength of her conviction."

Nodding, Fuyutsuki rolled his eyes. "You have a point, if they fail to the angels it doesn't matter what happened to them." Listening to the crowd below, he heard the order to send up the Eva's, Kozo felt the all to common chill working its way into this stomach as pre-fight jitters set it in. "On a side note, who do you think it was that started this mess?"

Proving to be just as conniving as ever, "I don't have to guess, I have the only remaining footage of the little encounter." Hiding his smile behind his arched hands, Gendo loved having power over the old bastard. "So I know exactly what happened to cause this, but I'll not go over it until after the battle."

X-X

"Ikari-kun, you need to focus on the matter at hand. If it pleases you, we can discuss what transpired between the 2nd and yourself after the battle." Rei was finding that she didn't like the upset Shinji. Her research into the nature of relationships and emotions drove her to think more and more that she might have 'feelings' for the boy turned girl. "Dying in battle will not alleviate your problems."

Exhaling hard into the LCL, the liquid spun around and did nasty things to her eyes, but Shinji didn't care. "I know, Ayanami, I know, but it's complicated and I'm just so…I mean…" Shinji tried to form words for what she was feeling, but just couldn't get the imagery to mesh with dialogue. "After the battle, you and I are going out for ice cream and I'll tell you all about it." Her smile over the HUD was met with a head bob and a tiny smile from the enigmatic Rei.

Breaking into the conversation was an Asuka riding a testosterone high, "I'd hate to break up this little love in but we have a floating basketball of doom to kill." Talking to Shinji was almost impossible, but with an Angel to focus on Asuka found it easier. "Get into position and let's kill this bastard." Blood pumped hot and fast through Asuka's veins, it felt so different now. Before he was able to focus and control the urge to kill the angels, but now all he wanted to do was rush in and blast the crap out of it.

Misato's voice chimed in over all three's comm. system, "Don't engage the target until we have a better understanding of its abilities. Right now all the thing is only an eyesore nothing else." Grazing over Ritsuko's initial analysis the Angel had the Magi all messed up. "Get to your posts and watch it only, do not attack it, understood?" The droning reply from the pilots didn't fill Misato with confidence.

First to her post, Shinji called in, "What is your status?" Thinking calmly, Shinji was all pins and needles of anxiety. Something was missing, something that helped her cope with the battles was gone and all she knew was fear. Only her want to keep her friends safe prevented Shinji from fleeing the battle ground. "This thing is about to pass me."

"Hold your horses 3rd I'm almost there," Asuka fired off hotly as he rounded a building only to stand face to face with the Angel. "Oh fuck…if it can see I think it sees me." Inside he felt a burning need to pick up his rifle and fire. Frantic calls for him to get back behind cover were ignored as bloodlust took over. Leveling his rifle, Asuka fired off a short controlled burst at the ball.

The next thirty seconds were seared into Asuka's mind permanently. He heard Ritsuko's voice over the comm. saying the angel that just disappeared was under him, and that's what that sinking feeling was. It was eating him or something. Next he felt a great pain in his chest and arm as something rammed him. Unit-01 crashed into him and knocked him free only to vanish into the black void. Rei's voice, impossibly loud for the girl Asuka knew, yelled out Shinji's name. Then they got the order to retreat, his body so numb with the adrenaline dump and the fight or flight response heavily in the flight category. Asuka was drug off by a very angry and resistant Rei.

When the cord was pulled back sans Unit-01, Misato rained down the holy hell on Asuka while Rei stayed in her unit unwilling to get out. The only thing Asuka could think of, besides the dark emptiness that the idea of Shinji dead created, was what happened to create the rift between them. It seemed too little and trivial now, but up until the sight of Unit-01 being enveloped in blackness it had been the world. Since it happened they had avoided each other like the plague, not talking about it and pretending not only that it didn't happen but that the other was gone.

X-X

Three days prior to then angel's attack and two hours after she had parted ways with Kensuke, Shinji sat in the bathroom. Her heart was beating like a hummingbird's, and she could feel her pulse hammering in her head. The porn magazine was in her hand and she was looking at the image of the Misato look-alike ravishing her own body. "It's just…just an experiment. Never going to get the chance again to do this," she whispered to herself as she set the magazine on the ground and sat on the toilet.

When as a boy, it had been easiest to perform the little task on the john for easier cleanup. She didn't know what exactly happened for women, or how long it took, but she was going to find out and had the magazine as a guide. "Ok…so I uh…wonder if I can do this through my cloths or…" Would she have to get nude to do this? She had to take her pants off as a boy, but as a girl maybe. "Damn you Kensuke for making me think this way."

But she couldn't really blame Kensuke; the seedling had been in her mind for a while. It was the question men and women always thought, what is life really like for them? And sex was a major part of life for men and women. Kensuke and his god-awful magazine just sped up the process.

Rolling the yellow sundress up past her thigh, Shinji stopped and took a few very deep breaths. "I'm sure Asuka will do this himself to my body if he hasn't already." While Shinji didn't really believe that, it helped ease her conscious. "Now for the…" her fingers went to the last boundary between her and lower total nudity. As her fingers laced through the cotton she stopped. "No…I can't do it," she muttered and kicked the magazine at her feet away and under one of Misato's cast off shirts, stood up letting the dress fall into place, and walked out and to the kitchen where she destroyed a tub of ice cream. Picturing Asuka's face, his real face, upset and sad at learning what Shinji had done during the time at the helm was cold enough shower to stop her exploration.

After her conquest over the evil vanilla with chocolate ribbon, Shinji retired to the living room. Watching the news and several of her favorite cooking shows, her heart finally calmed and she felt ashamed of what she almost did. "I will not betray his trust in me. It's not that big of a deal really." The curiosity didn't abate, but her resolve was strengthened. _I mean I do kind of like Asuka, so it really is a bad thing to do. _

Dropping his stuff on the floor, Asuka announced his return to the apartment in typical fashion. "Shinji, I'm hungry! Make me something to eat, something you like." He headed to the kitchen and grabbed a soda before catching sight of the ever beautiful body walking into the room. _Damn I am one sexy girl. My pert breasts, my defined features, and the way my hips sway…wait I don't remember walking like that. DOWN BOY STAY DOWN!_

Avoiding Asuka's gaze, Shinji gathered ingredients for the meal without so much a word. She just couldn't speak to Asuka knowing what she almost did. Not that it mattered, Asuka was more than willing to fill the air with countless babbling. Making a simple meal that used to taste wonderful but now was too bland, she hoped Asuka would enjoy it.

Absently watching Shinji cooking, paying more attention to the good naughty bits than he should, Asuka simply recounted her day. "Then Hikari fell into the fountain. Seriously it was a stupid hat anyway and she goes and falls into the mall fountain trying to get it back." Why put such emotional sentiment on objects, Asuka didn't get it anymore. In his room he had tons of little knickknacks that at the time were so important to him, now was useless clutter. "So what did you do today? After that little explosion in class I'm betting something happened."

"Kensuke wanted me to pose in some photos for him. He thought I'd be willing to do it so I could have 'memories' of what it was like being in your body," it took a monumental amount of willpower to keep her voice straight. She failed but Asuka either didn't notice or care. Putting the meal together, Shinji set the table and saw Asuka looking at her strangely, "Something on my face?" She was praying in her head that he wasn't on to him.

Gracing the girl with an honest smile he started eating. "No, I'm just proud of you. I knew those spores would try something. I was expecting I'd have to kick your sorry ass after it's your ass again. But after that show in class, I'm not so worried about it anymore." The more he thought about it, the more Shinji's attitude and behavior before was worming its way into Asuka's heart. _He did so much for me and I didn't even notice. I treated him like shit, but I was being such a bitch. _Calling Shinji a pervert was so far wrong now, Asuka knew from experience. The damn thing had a mind of its own and if he stopped paying attention to it, the damn thing sprang up and demanded it.

Conversation shifted then to more menial things, Shinji doing most of the talking. Asuka was content to listen and watch. Only once did the boy's eyes drift into naughty territory and the willpower exerted to keep Little Asuka down. The two retired to the living room and watched a horror movie, and once it was finished Shinji headed off for bed. An hour later Asuka was still sitting on the couch.

"I need to stop getting used to this, it's freakish and wrong," Asuka muttered. But he was starting to enjoy being a man. For him, life was easier this way. Nobody questioned his position as top of the food chain. He saw the admiration and fear in the boys' faces, and unconsciously noticed the wanton gazes of the girls. No longer did he feel compelled to show himself as the best, because in the sexist world he lived in men didn't refute men being on top like they did women.

With only the only trouble being the penis issue, Asuka was getting used to being in Shinji's body. It was so much simpler than being a woman. No periods to worry about, no fashion to cater too, he could eat what he wanted, wear what he wanted, and nobody questioned him! And looking at all the tasty little crumpets flaunting themselves all around him…well Little Asuka was enjoying that a lot.

Flipping off the television as the late night movies were starting, Asuka groaned in frustration. Something felt off in him, the longer he went the more frustrated he felt. "Just go to the bathroom and go to sleep." Turning off the lamp and putting the remote next to the couch the confused boy headed to the shared bathroom.

Still not comfortable standing while taking a leek, Asuka parked himself on the can. "Thing feels strange…stupid body," he moaned. He loathed touching the damnable thing between his legs, but it was that or piss all over the floor. Spotting something just out of reach he muttered, "The hell?" Leaning over he barely caught the edge of it and pulled it back. "Maga...zine?"

It was a fucking dirty magazine! Misato must have left the damn thing here, since Asuka knew Shinji didn't have any. Having packed up all of Shinji's things when he moved in, Asuka saw no elicit material, same couldn't be said for Misato. Flipping the pages, compelled by the yet undetected insurrection by his libido, Asuka was walking into a trap. "Why do guys look at these things?"

Page after page of beautiful bodies doing curiously arousing things while Asuka forgot where his other hand was, created a strange draw. Bending over, one hand on the magazine at his feet, the other occupied with other things, Asuka's breathing took several stuttering exhales. "This is hot," it wasn't like seeing the other girls in the showers at school, no this was a different feeling. "That looks like Misato," Asuka quipped as he increased his pace without even knowing it.

Finally it hit him, what he was doing. "Oh hell…I'm m-m-maste…" he stopped talking, but he only slowed his ministrations. It felt…good! It was different than as a girl, but it wasn't bad in any respect. And then it clicked, the frustration he had been feeling. It was the build up of all that pent up feelings. "I…shouldn't…" but he had already started and it would only be the on time.

Closing his eyes, he deliberated for a moment before pulling his jeans down the rest of the way. Fixated on the faux Misato, Asuka gave in to temptation. Men were easier swayed by the flesh, especially if it was just themselves who were being abused. But as he felt a strange build up in his stomach, an unknown but deliriously pleasurable sensation, the door opened and a groggy sleep eyed Shinji shuffled in. As her eyes popped open as she realized what she was seeing, Asuka climaxed.

X-X

Sitting in the break area of Nerv, Asuka fidgeted at the table an unopened can of soda in his hand. "They have a plan to save her right, Misato?" She couldn't die, not like that, not with so much left unsaid between them. Asuka wasn't even worried about the fact it was his body being lost, no it was the idea of Shinji being gone that he wouldn't accept. "Akagi's a genius so she has to have some plan to save her."

Letting the fact that the situation was all Asuka's fault, Misato cut the boy a break. Misato knew Asuka acted impulsively, but so did Shinji in saving Asuka instead of retreating. "She's working on something, but you're not going to like it." Misato's hand still stung from the slap she administered. "They're going to drop N2 mines inside the angel and blow them all up at the same time. Ayanami and you will be on standby to contain the blast with your AT-Fields."

His hand jerked and knocked the can off the table, "And that will save Shinji?" His voice cracked and broken as the sinking sensation settled in. What Misato was detailing didn't sound like a rescue mission, it sounded as if Shinji was being written off as dead. "She going to start up Unit-01 and shield herself with the almost minimal power she has left?" he asked incredulously.

Misato hugged her arms and shook her head, "They're not going to get the operation started for another hour yet. I'm here to tell you to suit back up, and get prepped. Was going to tell Ayanami but she's still in Unit-00." When Misato talked to Rei it unnerved the Major wasn't the lack of expression but how Rei appeared to just be a shell of a person, even less human than before. "And it's a rescue of Unit-01…not of Shinji."

The expected happened, and this time Misato fully understood it. Gripping the table firmly, Asuka threw it across the room at the vending machines. "That's fucking bullshit! She…how many times has this fucking place shit on her!" Grabbing chairs Asuka proceeded to vent his frustrations on the aforementioned vending machine. "Her father's a bastard, I treated her like a damn slave, you tease the shit out of her, and yet she saved my life TWICE! She keeps fighting fucking angels just to get KILLED for saving me!"

It wasn't fair! It wasn't right! Shinji deserved so much more than what she got, and only after losing her did Asuka realize it. He realized that the reason he was so hard on her wasn't just for his own enjoyment. No, he saw the spark of promise and tried to nurture it, unconsciously drawn to her. But he had been too clouded with the need to be the best to see it, to let Shinji inside, because it would have made him weak at the time.

When he broke the chair into its component pieces, Asuka proceeded to punch the plexi glass façade until his fist was bleeding. That's when Misato stepped in, to keep him from hurting himself more. "I know Asuka, I agree with you. It's not fair, but we have to have hope…Shinji's pulled off some amazing things before." Taking the shaking yet furious boy away from the destruction he wrought, Misato didn't even care about what she witnessed. _Asuka loves Shinji, maybe he doesn't realize it, but on some level he cares for her. This is fucked up, but right now it doesn't matter._

X-X

"This is an execution, I just want that put on record," Asuka announced over the speakers. Sitting in Unit-02, its comforting warmth did nothing to ease his mind. Glancing at the feed from Unit-00 was an image Asuka never thought he'd see. Ayanami was pissed, and not at Nerv, but at him. _She blames me for this, rightly so, but still it's not totally my fault. _Willing his beast to move, Asuka got into position as the timer ticked down. Thankfully Misato pressured the commander to push the timetable up so maybe Shinji was still alive, but with each passing minute it was a dwindling hope. "Can they hurry this up so maybe she's still alive?"

Rei was tired, tired of putting up with Asuka's shit. "When Ikari-kun is saved, I will not tolerate your behavior relating to her any further." Rei fixed on those soulful blue eyes that used to confuse her, but not now. Rei knew it was somebody she loathed behind them now. "Your actions have done nothing but hurt her, and it will not happen any longer. She is my friend, and as such I will protect her."

"You can say that till you're…blue in the face, but I already know that shit," was Asuka's retort. That burning sensation in his stomach was back, combat high. "Just shut your mouth and get ready. I won't make the same mistake I did before and I'll be damned if you do." Pulling on the stirrups, Asuka was vaguely aware Misato was telling both Rei and him to calm down and focus.

Cold, Rei felt cold. It was strange, before nobody mattered to her but the commander. Now knowing she might never see that confusing but pleasant smile of Shinji's made her cold. She wanted a friend, lover maybe, but more important was she wanted somebody to be her friend. Somebody that cared if she was alive, cared about her wellbeing, and Shinji was that. _I want her safe, I promised to keep her safe, and I failed. _She didn't like knowing that, but whatever happened now, if Shinji lived through it, Rei promised herself she was going to change.

Spotting the approaching planes, Asuka growled low, "Here come the murderers." If he had a pallet rifle, Asuka would have been tempted to shoot them down after they delivered their lethal contents. Whispering softly, "You better be alive after this you idiot."

As the whine of the planes was heard, something changed in the form of the ball. It developed red lines, both horizontal and vertical. It was bleeding, rippling, and then Asuka noticed Rei smiling. Honest to Kami-sama smiling from Ayanami Rei, and then Asuka knew it too. Unit-01's hands erupted from the floating mass, gore spilling from the gaping wound. Following the hands was the arms, tearing the gash wider, and finally the roaring head emerged and fell to the ground bathed in the blood of its fallen enemy.

For a minute Asuka just stood there taking in the carnage, a mixture of pride and disgust washing over him. Seeing Shinji's Eva acting like a demon from hell was disturbing, but that was quickly overridden by the fact that Maya couldn't verify life signs. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a streak of blue as Unit-00 was already on the move closing in. Not to be beaten, not in this type of race, Asuka willed her mighty weapon into a gallop and easily outpaced her rival.

Ripping Shinji's entry plug out of the back of Unit-01's neck, Asuka was on his emergency escape ladder moments after setting the plug on the ground. "You have to be alive, you just have to. I'll go to the afterlife and drag you back kicking and screaming if I have to!" His words tumbled out of his mouth like water over the falls. Punching in the entry code, Asuka was given a shower of LCL as Rei came to a stop right next to them. "Don't you step on me Wondergirl, I know you want to right now, but if you do you'll kill Shinji too."

The idea of accidentally turning Asuka into a road stain, while tempting, wasn't on Rei's mind. "Confirm her status," was all she said over the external speaker. The feed from the command station was frantic with orders to call off the bombing, Misato screeching at Asuka to listen, and Sub-Commander Fuyutsuki laughing for some reason. Maximizing the zoom on her external camera, Rei panned down to Asuka crawling into the entry plug, her breath held.

Forcing his way in through tiny coffin like entry plug Asuka called out, "Shinji you better say something." He saw her lying there, a thin trickling of blood coming out of her nose, "S-Shinji say something, don't you play around with me." Grabbing Shinji by the shoulders, Asuka carefully pulled the prone girl out into the open air. "She's breathing but…I can't wake her up!"

Before anybody could say 'overreact' Rei had linked into Nerv's computer system and ordered several ambulances to the site. Joining Asuka on the ground, Rei found Shinji's head cradled in Asuka's lap. She would be angry with Asuka later, now was confirming the safety of her best and only friend. Wiping the blood off Shinji's face, Rei nodded and cupped Shinji's cheek. "Do not hurt her, Soryu, or you will find I am not as passive as I might appear." Leaving the confused Asuka in her wake, Rei went to personally call the nearest hospital and repeat that if the ambulance wasn't tending to Shinji in the next five minutes Unit-00 would be making a personal visit and parking itself smack dab in the center of it.

X-X

Waking up in a hospital bed was quickly becoming something Shinji hated with a passion that was only challenged by the energy that went into a nuclear blast. The bed was thin, the blanket itchy, the nurses used to giggle at her when they brought food, and generally one doesn't check into a hospital room unless something is wrong or you were getting cosmetic surgery and Asuka's body didn't need any work done on it. "Please tell me good news," she said without even look at who was around.

"Soryu only knocked out three guards as they forced him to leave yesterday, that is two guards fewer than when he was given your body," Rei informed Shinji as she looked up from her book. "The angel was defeated, and thanks to your showering the streets with blood the unemployment rate has dropped due to the increase in janitorial staffs." Moving from the chair next to the bed to the bed itself, Rei sat close to Shinji. "You worried me."

Blushing at the closeness, Shinji smiled. "I didn't mean to, it was just I acted before I could think and…" She couldn't let Asuka get eaten by that thing, she could do something so she did. "What can I do to make it up to you?" Shinji asked noticing the minute tells that Rei was downtrodden.

Acting as the books she read told her Rei took Shinji's hand and held it lightly. The sensation was warm and pleasant, "Do not break your promise to take me out for…ice cream. And do not act so impulsively again." While she expected the former, Rei doubted the latter. She knew Shinji, better than anybody save Misato and maybe Asuka, and that meant she could see Shinji's self destructive yet heroic side clearly.

Taking Rei's action for what it truly was, an act of friendship not romance, Shinji gave it a squeeze. Touji and Kensuke were good friends, but she couldn't tell them some things. Asuka was confusing with whether they were friends or rivals, but with Rei she could tell something was forming that was different. This was going to be a friendship that an N2 mine couldn't budge. "The first is definite, and I'll try the second as best as I can."

Shinji was right about her thoughts about Rei and friendship, what she didn't know was she was getting a woman as her friend that was going to make life more than a little interesting. "I will let you rest and plan for our going out for frozen dairy products." Nodding one more time, Rei halted and then patted Shinji's head before turning to leave. A fanatic is somebody devoted to a religion, a maniac is somebody devoted to a cause, and Rei was devoted to this budding friendship with such intensity to make both fanatic and maniac look like part time enthusiasts.

Waving goodbye to the girl who she would eventually question her sanity, Shinji sat up and caught sight of Asuka peeking in the door as Rei rounded out. "You going to hide out there all day or come in so we can talk about this like we know we have to." It had been a hard few days, not talking to Asuka. He had become such an integral part of her life that Shinji could barely stand to keep up the anger she had. But while she had been strong enough to resist the temptation, she had seen Asuka succumb to it.

Like a scolded puppy, Asuka sulked as he took up the chair still warmed by Ayanami. "Shinji…first let me say thank you for saving me and…" He couldn't say any more, it was to hard to say it.

"I forgive you, Asuka," Shinji said quickly. It was best to get to the heart of the matter and let the healing start. "I was shocked at first when I saw what you did. Angry that while you kept saying you hated my body and what came with it, but in the end you weren't looking to upset." Asuka, if Shinji remember, looked like he was going to slide off the toilet as the sensation washed over him. _Well it was like that for me the first few times._

Head peering up, Asuka scanned Shinji's face for deception. Finding none, let out a deep sigh. "Thanks, I don't know how it happened, but I just…it snuck up on me! Crafty bastard thing is always trying to get me to do things." Watch porn, masturbate, ogle women, sniff Misato's panties again, and a host of other lil evils were being sung in a siren song in Asuka's weaker moments. "I owe you an apology for how I treated you before to…I never knew how having this…thing affects you."

Chuckling a little as Asuka pointed to his crotch with such energy. "You've gotten better about it though." Pulling the blanket up higher as she noticed Asuka casually glancing at the effects of the cold hospital air on Shinji's body, she shook her head. "But the question is this…what if the roles were reverses. What if you saw me doing that? Now that I know you've done that to my body how can I trust you not to do it again too?"

Hopping up in his seat, Asuka's smile widened. "I thought about that! This one time I'll let you…I mean as punishment for me…I'll let you if you want. I mean it's a once in a life time chance right?" And it was an eye opener for Asuka to know how men felt during the act of self pleasure, a lot better than he thought it would have. "Right now, I'll close the door and…"

"You would watch me do this?" Shinji asked skeptically with eyebrow raised. Drawing her arms up to her chest, Shinji didn't believe what she was hearing. "You want me to do that right now in front of you? And then just hope you never do it again?"

His jaw dropped, he hadn't realized just how perverted that sounded. After forcing Little Asuka to kindly shut the fuck up because he wasn't going to get off on watching his own body touch itself, Asuka coughed discretely. "You have a point. I guess…well I guess…Shinji what if we…don't worry about it? I can't say I'm happy to know it, but since I did it…its only fair."

"You've done it again haven't you?" Shinji asked after getting struck with the idea. As much as she didn't want to believe it, it was written all over Asuka's face. "I can't believe it, you did!"

Caught red handed, Asuka sputtered out and waved his hands. "I-I-I can explain!" Catching Shinji's finger taping against her elbow, waiting for Asuka to go on he did. "Well I went on the internet last night after I was kicked out of here. I wanted to see if I hurt your body in anyway by doing that, vitamin-c deficiency or something. And well I was all anxious and couldn't sleep and as I was reading I saw that it said that it helps men sleep…so…"

Stuck by the sheer weirdness of it all, Shinji snapped. Breaking out into thunderous laughter, she slapped her bed sheets hard. It was going to get stranger than before, but at least it wasn't going to be boring.

X-X

Author notes

Man I don't know how it happened but I got all serious in this story for the last few chapters. I wanted it to be a funny/drama mix and not full drama. You probably noticed a few little comedy parts in this one, trying to steer this thing back to a 50/50 mix…but no promises I do as my muse commands and she is a dark and brooding thing and a hysterical comedian but rarely both at the same time.

Ja Mata

Zentrodie (zentrodie-dot-geo-at-yahoo-dot-com)


	6. Chapter 6

Standard Disclaimer

Ugh…work and holidays suck so much time away from what I'd rather be doing. I had to seriously think about what to write today cause with so much that I want to…its hard to pick something. Some of you are upset while others happy.

X-X

It Can't Get worse

Chapter – 6

Hikari was slowly becoming accustomed to her new role as Asuka's sounding board. It was a sucky job, but the benefits were your house didn't get destroyed during an angel battle. So when she walked into the class room after having the weekend off, a full week after the last battle, she knew she was in for a big earful with how Asuka was sitting. "It didn't get the jump on you again did it, or did Ikari-kun see you again?"

His appearance was haunted, eyes sunk in, face pale, and his hand twitched every so often. "I never knew, Hikari, I never knew how bad things could truly get." The day after he came back from the angel battle, Shinji still in the hospital for observation, he came clean with Hikari about the ill wind between Shinji and him. Hikari was red in the face and that made Little Asuka excited, but that soon passed as Hikari started laughing.

Catching site of several of the other girls whispering and pointing at Asuka, Hikari hoped things didn't escalate on that front. "What are you talking about, and why do you look so haggard?" If Asuka said he stayed up all night watching the beach volley ball tournament again she'd snap. _Asuka is a lot more perverted as a boy, hope that passes. _Though, having a go with him didn't always sound so bad, becoming a woman with your best friend turned boy not-withstanding.

"Shinji," Asuka gasped out as the girl in question walked in with Ayanami Rei at her side. Putting that nugget of mental imagery away in the 'things to think about while alone in the bathroom' bucket, Asuka let out a staggered sigh. "Over the weekend, both Shinji and Misato, it was…it was horrible." Asuka had never considered it from the male perspective how accommodating a woman during her period would be. It wasn't nice.

Again catching eyes directed around the room, this time the boys salivating at Shinji and Ayanami, Hikari needed to crush that rumor fast. _This is all getting out of hand. Something with these two needs to give or its going to be an explosion of bad behavior. _As Class Representative, Hikari was not going to let that happen. "Something happened with Katsuragi-san and Ikari-kun? Did they BOTH see you?" While Hikari doubted all boys felt it necessary to experiment as much as Asuka, she did factor in Asuka was hopefully only going to get limited time with the tools of the trade.

"Time of the mouth," Asuka whispered softly into Hikari's ear ignoring the blush it ignited on the girl. Not seeing the look of understanding on his friend's face, Asuka felt it necessary to go into further detail. "It was…I was NEVER that ba…how did Shinji put up with it before!" That was the part that boggled Asuka's mind, the fact that Shinji had put up with it for so long and not been driven crazy. "When one was happy the other was angry, one would be frustrated and the other crying! And to make matters worse Misato forgot to buy pills for the cramps AND since neither of us used pads it was…Misato had to show Shinji how to use a tampon!"

While the last statement wasn't meant to be broadcast across the room, Asuka didn't control the volume of her voice at all. The boys all snickered at Asuka's crass comment, and the girls actually gave Shinji a look at condoned sympathy. It took several minutes for the raucous to die down. Hikari's face burnt again, but defiantly not for the same reason as before.

Across the room, Touji and Kensuke were beside themselves with how to handle that little gem of data. Touji, grinning like an idiot, "So Shinji, going to tell us how that all turned out? Misato and her teaching?" Being a typical stupid boy, Touji had absolutely no real idea what Asuka's comment meant. All he knew was everybody was laughing at it, and he saw tampon commercials on television all the time, usually with smoking hot women and something to do about cleanliness.

Nudging the beautiful girl in the side, Kensuke wanted to add his two cents making the grand total three. "That had to be something else, and speaking of something else I'll need that magazine back soon." Unlike Touji, Kensuke was always mindful of Rei now. Since the day Shinji came back to classes, the mysterious albino was in constant tow of her. While it wasn't him that got the rumor started, it was Rei that made matters worse with her shaky understanding of dating terminology.

"I fail to see how Ikari-kun's menstrual cycle or her learning to deal with it are of any concern of yours Suzuhara," Rei chimed in as Touji's laughter increased in pitch again. Enjoying the notion of friendship, and the added joy it brought her, Rei was adamant about defending her friend. "As for your pornography, Aida, you best inquire Soryu about its location as he was last in possession of it."

Leaning in closer to Rei as yet another uproar beset the classroom, Shinji admonished her well-intending friend. "Rei-san you really need to keep your voice down about such things, it will make Asuka look bad." Seeing how it was a boy and porn it was almost hand in hand, but Asuka did like to keep a 'clean' image while often denouncing Little Asuka as the next anti-Christ. "And remember what I told you about holding hands in class?" It felt nice to connect to somebody so deeply on a plutonic level, but Shinji was well aware of the rumor flying around about Rei and her.

Squeezing Shinji's hand comfortingly, "I am merely trying to ease your worries via physical contact. Friends do such things correct?" Rei's studying on the nature of friendship had opened doors she didn't know existed. But with such doors were rules that she didn't bother to even gloss over, all she focused on was maintaining and assisting. "And that is what we are correct? Friends' with benefits?" The benefit Rei was referring to was emotional support and solidarity, not that the other students knew that.

Covering Rei's mouth with her hand, Shinji spied the room hoping the uproar from before covered Rei's slip. "I don't think you know what that means, Rei-san," Shinji only found out after she said it to Touji the day before and the Jock almost fainted from a nose bleed. "I think what you meant was that we are really close, not 'with benefits.'" She whispered the last part.

Enjoying the warmth of the hand against her skin, Rei let it stay for a few moments before noticing the unwarranted attention it garnered. Pushing it down, but not releasing it, "Do you derive satisfaction in watching Ikari-kun and myself engaging in our rites of friendship?" She noticed the two boys were increasing their intake of breath and their eyes glazed over ever so slightly. "Do you two not partake in such things, you appear close."

In a matter of nanoseconds, Touji and Kensuke threw themselves away from one another. Both screaming out how very wrong Rei was and how they were 'friends' they assuredly weren't as close as Rei claimed to be with Shinji. But it was comments like that one which Rei made that had the majority of the classroom believing the newly turned female Shinji was being converted subjectively to lesbianism by a freshly awakened Rei.

Watching it all, Hikari started to see what was wrong with the picture. Asuka was a boy acting like a girl or at least trying to, and Shinji was holding onto her last vestige of masculinity. _While they are switched I think they need to act the role rather than fight against it. _But the problem was neither interacted with the other sex enough to adopt the proper habits, to be normal, and Hikari craved normalcy. Sure if Asuka stayed a boy, she'd tried to date him, but if Asuka continued acting girly it wouldn't really work.

When the teacher came in, Hikari was so lost in her thoughts she almost missed the morning ritual. During class, while Asuka over so refined in his actions snored on his desk, Hikari came up with the best idea to alleviate the situation. _Now to get things to work, Shinji will be easiest while Asuka is going to put up a stink so…oh! That'll work! _Hikari thought wickedly as she thought of the best way to bribe Asuka into action. Opening a chat window with Shinji, Hikari started to weave her masterful web. "Ikari-kun?"

Gently caressed back to the world of the fully awake and not semi-comatose, Shinji was startled by the chiming computer message. With only Kensuke and occasionally Touji sending her a text, it was a shock to see it was from Hikari. "Is something wrong Hokari-san?" she typed back.

"Yes and no, Ikari-kun," Hikari fired back. Scanning the classroom, full of students praying for Third Impact to happen to stop the recounting of Second Impact, Hikari didn't want to be seen bending the rules. "I think Asuka and you need more interaction with members of the opposite sex…your current sex."

Blushing a little at the idea, Shinji wasn't very welcome to the idea. Girls for the most part made Shinji nervous; well they did when Little Shinji complicated matters. Sans manhood, she was getting better with her fears. "I have Rei-san to help me with that, and Misato-san back at the apartment. I'd hate to bother anybody needlessly." Shinji had no idea that the two mentioned women held little in common with the typical woman.

Snorting lightly, Hikari held back her laughter at Shinji's oblivious comment. Typing back once she had her giggles out, "Shinji, no offence but Rei is as feminine as a street sign, and what I hear about this Katsuragi woman doesn't leave me any other choice. You'll come over to my place after school and you can set Asuka up with your friends. That way we all know each other and the situation. Sound good?"

Scratching her check, Shinji was dubious about accepting such an offer. "Are you sure it's a good idea to have Asuka hang out with Touji and Kensuke?" Shinji new her friends, and Asuka and Touji were oil and water on a good day. "I mean I can ask them, but if they don't want to I can't force anybody." And some time away from Asuka sounded good, being around him lately was making it very interesting. She was finding herself short of breath, light headed, and over anxious. _I know I like her…him…whatever, but is now the best time for this? I hate how I feel right now, so helpless._

"Trust me Ikari-kun, both of you need this. Just tell your friends to meet up with Asuka and I'll cover the rest ok?" Hikari's mind was already singing out the victory song. She was so right in attack the duo on the Shinji front. Knowing Shinji wasn't any of the bad things Asuka had stated in the past, bolstered now by the insight Asuka provided into the male mind, she made the perfect target. Shinji was accommodating, kind, and compassionate, but only if you know where to look. It wasn't as if the timid Ikari was screaming out these features, but Hikari could see them, and that made her weak to subterfuge.

Resigned to her fate, Shinji blew her hair out of her face and concluded with, "I'll try my best Hokari-san." She would try to get her friends to act on Hikari's request as best she could. Again the idea of talking to somebody about her feelings besides Misato or Rei was more appealing with each passing gaze at her old body. _Stupid feelings, if this whole swap never happened I could have just kept on pining for her in solitude. _

X-X

"I don't know if I should congratulate you or have you arrested for arrested for child abuse, Misato," Ritsuko said between drags of her smoke. "I mean couldn't you have just TOLD Shinji how to use it? Why did you have to actually do it FOR her?" Though with the situation and the people involved, Ritsuko wasn't as shocked as she could have been.

With a smug grin plastered on her face, Misato just twirled her coffee mug in her hand. "I think I did exactly what was necessary. And the look on her face was just perfect." It wasn't so bad having a daughter after all instead of a son. Misato just needed a way into Shinji's new life. Before it was sex appeal and teasing, now it was shared experiences and tutelage…and teasing. Snorting, "And you'll never believe what Asuka tried doing."

Pounding her coffee, black and strong, Maya groaned in aggravation, "Do you have to be so loud! I can't concentrate on these figures with you two harping like old spinsters about this crap!" The tech was a little on edge. Having most of Nerv constantly asking her what the status of the re-gender swap was going wasn't having a positive affect on the girls psyche. Knowing that if she failed the two pilots were doomed to a life in a new body. That equated into a lot of sleepless nights and extra unpaid overtime.

From at his station, Makoto tugged on his collar, "Maya maybe you should take a break. I mean you've been at your station since yesterday. And the rest of us do kind of want to hear what Misato has to say." It wasn't everyday people got to hear about a boy trapped in a girl's body, and with the base still on post angel high anything was good to help calm the nerves.

"GOD DAMN CODE OVERLAY BULLSHIT! WHO THE HELL HAS BEEN PLAYING WITH MY FUCKING OBJECTS!" Maya screeched as she attempted to run a trial run on her latest plan. The Magi hit a program error in Maya's code, and the tech wasn't taking it well. As she was the only person who knew the program existed it wasn't possible for somebody to have tampered with it, but then again she wasn't thinking logically.

Taking a step away from the time bomb of rage Maya had become, Ritsuko wasn't liking the way pressure affected the girl. "Just take a breath Maya, nobody is working on your programs but you, check your settings. I'm sure something just got messed up." Ritsuko eyed Misato, nodded to the left with her head twice and beat a hasty retreat with Misato following close behind, which left the others on the command deck at Maya's temperamental wrath.

Once out of ear range of the furious tech, Misato let out a sharp laugh, "Well that bolsters my confidence in her getting this done." Her words contained her own frustration and unwanted acceptance that she might never get her true 'son' back. "Maya needs to get laid or pot, or she'll kill us before this is over." Catching a nervous tick of Ritsuko's, the blond would grab her left ear when she had done something bad and was caught, Misato's brow hardened, "What did you do Ritsuko?"

Reaching into her pocket, Ritsuko pulled out a small wooden box, "Going to give it to her after her shift. It's a hitter box, and Maya will either kill herself in the process or somebody else if she doesn't find some way to calm down." Hiding illegal paraphernalia on her person wasn't something Ritsuko was worried about, it was the fact it was her own home grown stash she was giving out. "Anyway, you were saying something about Asuka before Maya's rage induced comments?" Ritsuko wanted a good laugh more than ever now.

Able to turn on teasing mode with a drop of a hate, Misato's previous demeanor instantly changed to an impish grin. "Oh yeah, Asuka's little request." Waving the good doctor to come in closer, Misato wanted to get a good look at Ritsuko's face when she told her. "It has to do with my little lesson with Shinji-kun. You'll never guess what Asuka did."

"Either he asked if he could watch, do it himself, or he stole the used tampon!" Ritsuko thought of all the oddities that a newly awaken boy might try. And like all the other crew members of Nerv, Ritsuko didn't really care but it was a great stress reliever, one that was sorely needed. Everybody got the sense of what was going on, Shinji and Asuka would either be cured or they'd not, but the real issue was what happened if the broke before they learned the truth. Almost losing Shinji in the last battle, let alone losing Unit-01 made everybody remember how shaky the odds of living were.

Letting out a gut buster laugh, Misato held up one finger, "He said he wanted to make sure I didn't touch Shinji inappropriately! This from a boy that has taken to masturbation like a painter does to a new medium was priceless!" Her cheeks flushed red as she continued to laugh, "And the look on Shinji's face when he asked was priceless! She walked over to Asuka, gave him the meanest look I've ever seen Shinji capable of and shut the door without a sound!"

Wiping a tear that escaped from her own laughter, Ritsuko sighed as her giggled subsided, "Oh brother I needed that one." Turning back to the deck, Ritsuko lead the patrol back, "Speaking of Asuka's new zeal for the male form, does the road go both ways?" Ritsuko was a little shocked at the cause of the near death of humanity stemmed from Asuka charming the anaconda, but now that immediate death wasn't staring her in the face she was more inclined to indulge her curiosity. "Shinji-kun ever ask you how to do that?" Ritsuko almost didn't want to know.

Shrugging, Misato shook her head, "Your guess is as good as mine on that one. She's never said a word about it, nor has Asuka seen her do it." Knowing Shinji as she did, Misato doubted that Shinji had. "She's to worried about how Asuka would react, despite the pact the two made about it. I think…and Kami-sama help us for this, I think they have feelings for each other that go beyond teammates or friends."

Wincing, Ritsuko knew the implications of that little bag of worms. "Well nothing can be done about that, you'd never get Asuka to reside her feelings, it took Kaji abandoning him to break that crush a little, and Shinji…kid is just screaming for attention." Pulling out another smoke, it helped to just have it in her mouth, Ritsuko only hoped that if one of them go the urge to finally act on their emotions it didn't end up eradicating humanity.

X-X

"I can't believe Hikari convinced me to actually hang out with you two idiots," Asuka said despite his grin. Basketball in hand, Asuka dribbled the ball across the outdoor court. "But then again, a steak dinner sounds delicious, but I digress. What did Shinji promise you two, because I know I'm not your favorite person either." Asuka had no qualms about being hated by Touji and Kensuke, it went both ways.

Setting up a camera and hooking it up to his laptop, Kensuke adjusted his glasses while smiling himself. "A picture of her, one that will make us a mint on the photo market," he said as he set up the online link. The pair agreed initially to the photo deal, but Kensuke got the great idea to play the 1-on-1 game between Asuka and Touji on line to knock the German down a peg.

Doing a between the legs dribble, Asuka felt his anger peak, "That bastard! When I get home I'm going to skin the pervert alive!" Here he was wasting a perfectly good afternoon 'chumming with the guys' as Hikari put it, and there Shinji was whoring herself out to her friends for favors! _I thought I could trust Shinji, and this is what I get? _It hurt, it hurt a lot to have his trust violated.

Almost reading Asuka's mood, Touji stole the ball and shot a basket, "Don't get your boxers wedged up your ass, Red. She made us promise that you'd be there when we take it so you don't get your precious image tainted." Running to get the ball back, Touji missed the caring look that befell his opponent. "So you ready to get your ass stomped into the mud? And where IS Shinji anyway, I want her to see my victory."

Rushing Touji, Asuka head faked him and stole the ball back. He felt momentary shame for not having more faith in his Shinji. _She'd never do anything to hurt me, always wanting to please everybody but never hurt. _His heart lightened at the consideration. Taking the ball out to the three point line, Asuka made her basket. "She's with Hikari right now, something about making her more feminine while she's in my body."

Kensuke was suddenly not so sure of Touji's chances. Asuka had already made several difficult shots during the warm-up and wasn't even winded. The pair had expected Shinji's body to be out of shape and easily outpaced by Touji. "Video camera is set and tuned into the schools network. You two ready to play?" On the side, Kensuke looked at the betting pool and saw the odds changing in Asuka's favor. _Sorry Touji, but my money is on Red. Buy you a drink afterward with some of the winnings. _

"I'd say Shinji is already more a woman than you were," Touji ribbed his opponent hoping to put him off his game. A one-on-on wasn't all about basketball skill, trash talking was a viable weapon on the court. "I mean did you see the line of guys watching her in gym today? Since she can't swim she was nice eye candy for us, and I saw you checking her out." He tried not to think about the oddity of checking yourself out from another person's body.

Grabbing the ball and rolling it down his arms, over his shoulders, and to his other hand, Asuka knew what Touji was doing and was disgusted with the fact it was working. "This coming from somebody that claims to be her 'best friend?", Asuka scoffed. Doing a few more skill dribbles he felt sufficiently warmed up. Shinji's body was in drastically better shape that Asuka had first imagined. "And as for what I was doing, I was making sure she was ok. I worry about my friends, not try to profit off them."

As the pair officially started their match, Kensuke sat on the side lines and watched the events unfold. A crowd was growing outside the fenced in enclosure, a mix of boys and markedly higher female population. "Damn, this is defiantly a backfire on our part," Kensuke grunted as Asuka sank another three-pointer. A gaggle of girls were cheering for Asuka as he widened his lead. The trash talking continued, with both sides pulling no punches. Touji focused on Asuka's shortcomings, his anger, pride, and new found lust. Asuka was more psychological, aiming for making Touji expose his own foibles.

In the end it was Asuka thirty/Touji twelve. The throngs of girls were officially Asuka fans and they cheered out victoriously as Touji shook Asuka's hand. As Kensuke calculated his winnings, he found himself mystified at what he was seeing on the court. Asuka and Touji were smiling at each other, they even shook hands!

Wiping himself off with his extra shirt, Asuka took a swig of a water bottle one of his as of yet unknown admirers handed him. "Ah feels good to get some decent exercise for a change. What's next?" Male bonding wasn't as bad as Asuka thought it would be, sure Touji was an idiot but he was just concerned for a friend Asuka realized. It was the same for him, but Shinji was more his friend than Touji's now. _I guess I was a little wrong about these two idiots, I mean they have to suffer this damn things curse to. _

Patting Asuka's shoulders, something he thought he'd never do, Touji bobbed his head. "Damn, man, you're a lot better than I thought you'd be. And typically after I shoot a few solo hoops," he glared at Kensuke as the geek packed his gear, "we hit the arcade for a few games, and if we have money left we hit a burger joint." When Asuka wasn't being a prude he wasn't so bad, and Touji had to admit it was nice having somebody to actually play against him. Maybe, just maybe, he might ask Asuka to play again.

Grabbing his satchel, Asuka considered it, "I did promise to hang out with you until Hikari called me." Even without that promise, Asuka secretly admitted to himself that he'd have likely gone with them. Blasting the crap out of some pixilated baddies and some tasty western food was too good an offer to pass up. "Let's roll."

The two stooges were perplexed as they headed off with Asuka behind them. It was almost like having Shinji back, if Shinji was more masculine and a total chick magnet. But they had to remember it was Asuka, the girl that made there lives a living hell. It was confusing, they actually enjoyed hanging out with Asuka but were hard pressed to believe it.

X-X

Sitting in Hikari's room, Shinji didn't know exactly how she should be feeling. She knew that Hikari wanted her to get more exposure to 'normal' girls, but what did that really entail. "H-Hikari, what did you want to do?" All they had done so far was head to Hikari's house, make a simple supper, and then Hikari changed cloths.

Brushing her hair, Hikari put her celphone in her purse and headed towards her door. "We're going to hit the shopping arcade and talk a little while, Shinji." It was Hikari's suggestion that they use less formal names, if they were going to be friends it needed to start somewhere. "And typically Asuka and I meet at the mall after we both change, as you're not experienced in that you can just keep your school uniform on." Hikari didn't want to know what Shinji's taste in apparel was suddenly. It would be better to watch the new girl shop around.

Her head bobbing slightly, Shinji remembered Asuka doing similar things in the past. "Sounds ok, I need some groceries anyway." As they headed to the front door of the Hokari apartment, Shinji head shuffling again and saw the back of Nozomi's hair disappearing around a corner. "Why does your little sister hide from me?"

Unlocking the door, Hikari chuckled without any real joy, "Well she doesn't get along well with Asuka so she's taken to hiding when Asuka stops over. I haven't told her about t he whole, you know," Hikari rolled her fingers over as the pair stepped out into the fading sun of the afternoon. "Now, tell me about what troubles you've been having since um it happened."

Walking side by side with the girl Shinji always associated with Asuka and authority, it was strange to see the friendly side of the girl. "Well, not much anymore. I still have issues with my undergarments, and I've nicked my legs times shaving them, but I've gotten a lot better." Shaving really was something Shinji had come to loath. "I've been thinking of getting that spray that kills and prevents leg hair from growing, maybe waxing."

Hiding her smile behind her hand, Hikari could relate, "I know right! I tried using one of those new replaceable blade razors and all I got was a big cut down my calf." Hikari was stunned at how easily conversation with Shinji was flowing, a boy shouldn't be this easy to chat with. The mental image that had residual traces in Hikari's mind from old stories of Asuka's painted Shinji as a leach and an uncoordinated buffoon, but she was anything but those things.

The duo spent a highly enjoyable, familiar in some ways but alien in others, with each other. At times Hikari forgot that the person next to her was really a stranger, but at others she was reminded painfully of the differences between the two. When they were approached by two would be Casanova's, where Asuka would have angrily told the idiots to hit the bricks, Shinji shied away from them which only added to the boys pursuits of her. Thankfully the arcades security saw the events and shooed the boys out of the women's section.

After the pair had there fill of biennial conversation and window shopping they stopped at the same ice cream parlor that Shinji took Ayanami two weeks prior. Getting smalls, they sat by a window and watched the people walking. Shinji ate slowly but contently, "Thank you Hikari for suggesting this, things have been so hectic lately and I really needed this break."

Swirling her spoon through her dessert, making it more soupy and less firm, Hikari waved off Shinji's appreciation. "It was just as fun for me, Shinji. Asuka has been…well he doesn't like doing the same things we used to do together. I guess its something to due with brain chemistry or something, and I've been missing 'a girls' night out' so to speak." And Shinji was proving to be a much deeper person than she ever thought possible. She was generally impressed at times with her insight, and a bit ashamed at how she used to believe Asuka's stories and feared the male Shinji.

Taking a small spoonful, Shinji carefully avoided getting a brain freeze, "Hikari can I ask you something. And you have to promise never to let Asuka know I asked?" She wanted to trust Hikari, the girl was hell of a lot nicer outside school. While it would never get as close as her friendship with Rei, Shinji could feel a bond growing.

Following the behind of a particularly nice looking guy as he walked by, Hikari was half expecting something like this but hoping against it. "I'll try to answer any question you have Shinji. As for Asuka, unless he tortures me I won't say a word." So what was it going to be? 'How do you deal with periods?' 'Can I not shave my armpits and wear t-shirts?' Or any other of countless other 'girly' questions that would chip at Hikari's growing respect for Shinji.

Shinji didn't have a question about her body, no self studies and television filled in much of that, she had a more important question. "Does Asuka ever…does he ever talk about me?" A lovely crimson flush adorned her cheeks as the embarrassment of such personal question overwhelmed her. "If-if you don't want to answer you can."

For a moment, Hikari just sat there, a spoon of chocolate ice cream fell off her spoon and into her lap but she didn't notice. For a long time Hikari suspected the reason Asuka was bipolar in regards to Shinji was that Asuka liked him. Asuka would be aggressive that Shinji was a genuinely poor quality male, but then treat him better than any other boy. Asuka had been hoping to keep the other girls away from him, and the way she used to look at him hadn't always been harsh. It got even worse since the change, while Hikari lied to herself thinking it was just Asuka being protective of the body, it seemed Asuka wasn't concerned with just his old vessel. And now, Shinji was asking the question. Hikari could see between the lines, see the real question being asked. _Does Asuka like me? _And the only reason she would ask that was because… "You like Asuka don't you?" even as she wanted to be upset, Hikari was actually happy.

Waving her hands frantically back and forth, spraying wet goopy liquid all over, Shinji sputtered out denials. Realizing Hikari wasn't buying it, she sunk her head low and nodded. "I-I for a long while thought it was just a fixation, that since she was new and exotic that it was just curiosity. But ever since…" she gestured to her body, "I've been thinking a lot more about it. Misato is a sister maybe mother to me, Rei defiantly is a friend, but Asuka was my best friend. We didn't always get along, but I learned why he treated me the way he did. And now…" tears threatened to break from her wavering eyes.

Reaching across the table, Hikari's heart went out to Shinji, "Don't fret about it Shinji. You just have to tell him this. Whatever happens after you do is what is meant to be. Either he accepts or declines and you go from there. Now cheer up and eat up since its melting." Hikari grinned when Shinji met her gaze with a firm determination set in her eyes. _Going to be an interesting night for the two of them. _

X-X

Author Notes

Well progress is being made, I'm debating on were exactly I want to end this little story. I could take it out longer or make it shorter…right now I'm thinking shorter. I have another idea in mind and I hate having to many stories going at once cause it really slows down updates.

Anyway hope you liked it

Ja Mata

Zentrodie


	7. Chapter 7

Standard Disclaimer

Yeah this story is just about finished. But it needs to go out with a bang not a whimper. Anyway thanks for reading it and supporting it, if you still are reading it.

X-X

It Can't Get Any Worse

Chapter – 7

For a moment, Hikari thought everything had returned to normal. Standing in the doorway to the classroom everything appeared as it had three months ago. A male Shinji was talking and with Touji and Kensuke and a female Asuka was sitting looking particularly content next to her desk. The illusion was only broken by the existence of Ayanami Rei chatting with said female Asuka, an event that never happened before. For a few minutes Hikari just watched the class interact with the body swapped pair.

If Hikari had to point out one thing that surprised her the most, it would have been how the girls accepted Shinji. She watched as a trio of girls walked up to Shinji and Rei, smiled and chatted and walked away after inviting Shinji out for a mall trolling trip after school. While Asuka had been respected and feared by the girls, Shinji was openly accepted and adored by them. At first, she remembered, the other girls hated Shinji even more than they already had thanks to Asuka gossip about him being a pervert. They all thought Shinji was going to peek at them as they changed in gym, or try other ways of using Asuka's body to violate them. But as Shinji refused to change with them, out of respect for privacy, and her polite and caring nature became apparent they girls changed. Now Shinji was far more popular than she had ever been as a boy.

Giving up her little spying game, Hikari waved at Shinji and Rei as she walked over to them. "How are you two doing this morning?" she asked while taking her seat. Taking a glance over at the idiot duo plus Asuka, Hikari saw several more boys joining in the circle. Noticing Shinji averting her eyes, "You did tell him yesterday right, Shinji?"

Having failed to muster up the courage to talk to Asuka yesterday, Shinji just shook her head. "No, he was in such a good mood after hanging out with Touji and Kensuke that I didn't want to ruin it." Shinji felt content in knowing she didn't ruin Asuka's good day. The boy came back and just rambled out how mistaken he had been about the two boys and how great it was to play the new games at the arcade, and Shinji liked Asuka happy. "I don't know if I can tell him."

Acting again out of her book reading, Rei wrapped an arm around Shinji's shoulder and pulled lightly. "I do not know what you are talking about, but it appears to be troubling you. A hug is correct in such times yes?" Whether it was or not, Rei was administering it. The pair had chatted off and on while waiting for school, and Rei could tell Shinji was keeping something hidden, she was observant to say the least.

Blushing in embarrassment at the overt show of affectation, Hikari was tempted to tell Rei that friends didn't hug that tightly but decided against it. "S-Shinji you really should have told him. Even if it doesn't end like you want it to, it's better than letting this eat you alive from the inside." Another raucous laugh erupted from the gathering of boys distracted the class representative. Asuka was taking his 'male bonding' seriously and was really succeeding at it, Hikari gathered.

"I don't know why I should though," Shinji refused to look up. Rei's embrace left her frazzled yet warm. "I mean what good would it do? It would just make things between us change and that won't be good." She felt Rei quiver a little and pull harder, taking a glance at her friend he saw Rei glaring angrily over at the boys. "But enough about this, what about you Hikari? What happened to you after we separated?"

Stunned for a moment by the sheer intensity of emotion Ayanami was displaying, Hikari almost didn't answer. _Is that jealousy or just plan hate I saw there?_ Shaking such thoughts from her mind, Hikari rubbed at her eye. "I just went back and played a puzzle game with Nozomi." Letting out a breath as Rei finally let go of Shinji, Hikari smiled, "I think we should all go out more often, Ayanami included. I had a lot more fun with you than I thought I would."

"Why would you not expect to have fun with Ikari-kun?" Rei quickly swapped from the boys to Hikari. If she recalled correctly, what the class representative just said was a disparaging remark. Rei was not about to let anybody emotionally hurt her only friend. "The time I spend with her is always enjoyable," her voice while monotone held a hint of possessiveness.

Putting her hands up in defense, Hikari jerked back. "Well it's just…before Asuka would tell us girls some stories about you Ikari-kun. Asuka has, well had, some issues with boys and it seems he embellished a little." Hikari chose not to go to detailed into just how super perverted Asuka made Shinji appear, or how crass.

Nodding sagely, Shinji finally met Hikari's gaze and tittered lightly. "That's an understatement Hikari." Shinji had no illusions about Asuka's past attitude towards men, and fully expected the exaggerations. "As for going out again, I'm game if Ayanami is," she turned to the albino who nodded briefly and smiled. _I wish she would smile more, it suits her so well._

"HEY SHINJI GET OVER HERE!" Asuka yelled from across the room.

Immediately Shinji got up and headed towards the now trio of boys. Hikari again noticed that look of anger or jealousy on Rei's face. But this time she mistakenly spoke, "Ayanami are you alright?" Hikari's caring nature had again opened a bag of worms best left incased in cement and used as the base block for a skyscraper.

Not taking her eyes off Shinji, "Why does she allow him to hurt her so? Soryu has done many things to hurt her, and yet at a simple demand she rushed to him." Rei didn't want Shinji hurt, or in pain and all Asuka seemed to do was inflict it. It was maddening that she couldn't keep Shinji away from the contemptible bastard. "She should not interact with him as all he does is hurt her."

While Hikari did question Shinji's affection for Asuka, she wasn't going to try and understand it. "Shinji loves him, Ayanami. And right now as they are, I don't think anything can come from that." It would be far to awkward to embrace your old body, holding yourself, kiss yourself. Hikari fully expected that when they got better it would be a different story, but for now it was just emotional sharing. "You did know Shinji was in love with Asuka right?" she was almost afraid to know the answer.

The pen Rei held in her off hand snapped and oozed ink all over her, "I was not aware." Slowly, robotically, Rei swiveled back to Hikari as the bombshell went off in her head. Love was something Rei was starting to grasp, and Shinji loving Asuka was horrifying. That emotion was responsible for people doing truly dreadful things at times and placed people in terrible danger.

Against all her higher brain functions, Hikari asked, "How does that make you feel, Ayanami?" Hikari didn't want to know, she wanted this conversation over. Hikari's brain worked on the preconceived notion that men married women, and never the opposite would occur. It was a lot like living in the past, but denial was a Hokari strong point as her sisters still believed in the Easter Bunny. "How does Shinji liking Asuka make you feel?"

"Worried," was all Rei said. She was confused and angry that Shinji would have such feelings for anybody and not tell her. Friends told friends everything didn't they? _But I have not told her about my dealings with the commander, so I do not have liberty to be to angry. _Logic was playing a cruel game in Rei's mind, but logic and emotions were eternal enemies. Turning back to watch Shinji and Asuka talking, Rei felt something. It was cold and while caused no physical pain it hurt all the same. She didn't like it.

X-X

Misato was stunned, standing next to Ritsuko she pointed at Maya's station with her jaw almost unhinged. "Are you seeing what I am?" her finger jutted out at the mousy tech. Yesterday had been a blessing, no strangeness at the apartment, no angels, and a fresh case of beer had been delivered. Now she was seeing a smoke stack at work. "I've got the DT's or something."

Running over to the pair of women, Shigeru pointed at Maya, "I don't know who gave it to her, but Maya's been smoking pot all day." Being just around lunch time, Shigeru was getting a very nice contact high. "I've seen a lot of people running off after they saw her. Think they went to HR to complain?" Pot being illegal in Japan, and many people being prudes meant that Maya might be out of a job, and Shigeru really wanted to ask her out.

"Well she isn't raging out like yesterday," Ritsuko tried to justify the illegal activity before them. "I mean if nobody is hurt and she's focusing on getting the pilots back their original body, what is the harm?" Uneasiness started settling in on the doctor, if Maya was arrested they'd likely ask where she got her stuff and that would lead straight back to her.

Tossing an empty bag of chips to the ground, Maya waved her hand wildly, "Ritsu-chan I need more snacks! I got the munchies like a mother fucker." Like alcohol, pot has different affects on different people. For Maya, it knocked down the restrictive nature and made her act on all the impulses she generally hid from the prying eyes of other humans. "Shigeru stop hiding behind their skirts and get back to work you slacker!"

Misato snorted as held back laughter while Shigeru ran back to his desk. "Ritsu-chan?" Misato asked her friend as Ritsuko rubbed her forehead. "You're going to have to explain that one to me, or is it what it sounds like?" Teasing the blond was almost as fun as teasing Shinji.

"I'll get you something in a minute, Maya," Ritsuko called out. Stomping rather hard on Misato's foot, the good doctor hooked her finger wickedly at her drinking buddy. "And she's just reacting to the THC differently than I expected. And no we're not in some relationship your sick mind is concocting." Just a few late night stress relievers didn't constitute a relationship. "In hindsight I guess giving her that hitter box was a bad idea. Who knew she'd escalate to making her own joints in just one day."

Before Misato could react, movement caught her eye and she grabbed Ritsuko's shoulder. Pointing out wide eyed at the man moving amongst the common worker ants, Misato didn't have to say what got her so spooked. "C-commander Ikari, what brings you here during a lull in the action?" Misato had noticed, as all of Nerv did, that Gendo never was on deck when there wasn't an angel or when Rei wasn't around. _Please don't be Maya, Please don't be Maya. _Losing Maya meant losing the only person with the time to work on a cure.

"I've gotten complaints about one of Akagi's techs violating standards. I came to verify for myself." And Gendo really did enjoy doing all the firing himself. It was his form of stress relief, and with the sudden loss of a son and gaining a daughter he was a little more stressed that normal. The scenario had to be followed closely and Yui's reaction to losing her beloved son might affect that. Without giving Misato or Ritsuko the chance to stall him, the commander of Nerv headed right to the smoking tech, "Lt Ibuki, what are you doing?"

Pulling a baggy out of her pocket and her rolling papers, Maya gave Gendo a disinterested glance. "Working and waiting for that tight ass to get me my snacks," Maya giggled as she rolled her smoke. Things were going great, without stressing as much she came up with an idea to fix things and so far it appeared it might be the best option they had. Lighting her joint she took a deep drag, "I could kill for a pizza right now though."

His eyebrow raised a fraction of an inch as Maya's comment registered. While Gendo had his opinion of Ritsuko, he never suspected such events with Ibuki. "I was referring to your current actions." The supreme commander couldn't help but notice how all eyes were on him now, this was going to be an epic firing.

"Trying to get your son's dick back, though I kinda like Shinji as a girl," Maya shrugged. Shinji appeared more content and happy as a girl, and Maya felt better knowing her life wasn't in the hands of a suicidal child. "Was thinking if she didn't get turned back I might try asking her out. I'm not that much older than she is, and that's a smoking hot body. Asuka's too much effort, but Shinji…now I could see something there." Maya nodded to her own internal logic as she hammered away on her keyboard.

While only Ritsuko noticed it and knew what it meant, one of Gendo's tells was showing. He was getting angry and the first showing was his left hand balled into a fist. "Ibuki-kun, maybe you should stop working for a moment and face me." Adjusting his glasses with his other hand, Gendo wanted to throttle the pot smoking lesbian. "And your illegal activity isn't going unnoticed."

"Like I care if somebody narks me out?" Maya spun around in her desk and blew smoke in the commander's face. "If I go, so goes the chances of Shinji and Asuka ever getting their bodies back. You want that to happen?" Maya took another deep drag. "Didn't think so, now if you're going to stay here and be grumpy because nobody lets you share in the fun go do it by somebody else."

As Maya went to spin back around, Gendo lunged and grabbed the chair to keep her in place. "Ibuki, are you seriously talking to your commanding officer this way?" A vein in Gendo's head was throbbing, and Ritsuko was slowly inching away towards a phone in case Gendo tried to kill Maya. "We are tasked with saving mankind and here you sit smoking pot and carrying on like some child?"

Laughing so hard tears came to her eyes, Maya's joint fell to the ground. "Oh get off it man! Commander-Poo if you keep being such a dick to everybody one of these days somebody is going to kill your grumpy ass!" Jerking her thumb back over her shoulder she announced, "As for my 'carrying on' I'm waiting for the Magi's results on my plan to fix things." Reaching down for her joint, Maya still chuckled, "I don't see how you can enjoy life with that stick jammed so far up your ass. I mean if you were a little nicer I bet people might actually like you."

The entire command box was listening and watching the interplay between Maya and Gendo. Several bets were placed on the outcome, the highest was Gendo capping Maya right there. Misato was about to rush in and separate the pair before things got worse, but she was so astonished she couldn't move. Shigeru was offering sulking in the corner having heard the comments Maya said about Shinji officially pulling her off the market.

Taking a step back from the impudent woman, Gendo adjusted his shirt, "Ibuki, I have no choice left now but too…" his hand reached for his hidden sidearm. Maybe a little show of force would knock some sense into the stupid bitch. Always worked before, show the gun and make a little threat and BANG the idiots fall into line.

"Going for your 'natural male enhancement' again sir?" Maya was eating this up like cream. Why were people afraid of this man? He was the kid that got picked on in school all grown up but given power. "Sir, if you're going to kill me I would suggest waiting until I finish my work." Taking another deep drag, cashing her joint, Maya held it in for the desired effect. "Seriously, stop being a jerk and maybe you'd get invited to more parties sir." Hearing her terminal chime, "Now if you'll excuse me I have to see what the Magi have to say."

Gendo's body was pulsating with aggravation, the audacity of this woman! It was like being back in grade school! All the people picking on him and making fun of him! He was in control now damn it! He had the power over them, so why was this happening to him all over again! "I wasn't finished with you!"

Ignoring the man, Maya slapped her hands on the console and cheered, "We have an option!" Pushing away from her desk, Maya ran over to the stupefied Ritsuko. "Sempai, Magi give the idea a twenty percent chance of working. Only question now is which Eva to try it in." Turning to Gendo, "What is your favorite color sir, purple or red?"

"P-Purple," Gendo squeaked out as his rage surged. He could see it so clearly now, he was going to have Rei step on her in her Eva. He was going to film it and watch it daily!

"Unit-2 it is then!" Maya announced and the whole box went up in cheers. Grabbing Ritsuko's shoulder she continued. "Using the corpses of the artificial bodies we'll get the dead cells of the angel. By focusing enough electricity through the cells and applying chaos theory, the cells will possibly react the same way they did during the test, replicating the event and turning them back to normal! Only problem is the cells will get destroyed in the process meaning we only have one chance at this, and if it doesn't work nothing else will."

Peeking at Gendo over Maya's shoulder, Ritsuko tried to appear happy as she spoke, "T-that's great Maya. We'll get started on it and call the children in after its ready." Dislodging herself from the exuberant tech, Ritsuko was going to try and defuse the G-Bomb, "Sir, did you hear her? Thanks to her smoking she was clear headed enough to…"

Moving at a speed that nobody thought the older man possible, Gendo was in front of Maya in seconds. His hands gripped the woman's shoulders and locked her in place. The room watched intently and not a breath was heard. "Good work Ibuki, I believe your transgressions can be overlooked this one time," and he let go of her and made a hasty retreat. _Maybe she is right about the parties._

The whole command crew gazed in awe as Maya skipped towards the vending machines. Nobody would ever try to replicate what she had just done, but it elevated her social status to near godhood.

X-X

"I don't know why she got so mad, I mean it is my body after all," Asuka huffed. Turning to Kensuke who was dismantling his camera and Touji who had a miffed expression, he expected them to agree. "I mean she agreed to those photos for you guys, and I was here to watch it too. Hell I gave permission!" But Shinji had looked so hurt, almost ready to cry before she ran off. What was going on?

Touji had seen it too, one moment Shinji was laughing and shortly after she was running away from them. It hurt him to see Shinji like that. "I don't know Red, maybe you tried pushing her to far." The mini photo shoot started easy enough with Shinji in Asuka's favorite sun dress, then it was a few swimsuit shots, and then Asuka asked Shinji to take the bikini top off. "Asking her to take topless pictures might have been too much."

Crossing his arms, Asuka scowled, "I was going to have her cover with her hands, guys, and I wouldn't have you running around with THAT much of my body on display." It was his body, he should have the right to say what pictures got made. And as much as it pissed him off, Asuka knew he had done something bad. _Just watching all those poses got me hot and bothered. I wanted to see more, I shouldn't have done that. _

Zipping the back closed as the last of the attachments were in place, Kensuke saddled his bag. He knew what had really been the cause. It was so similar to when he offered Shinji the porn magazine. "It was what you said that set her off, Red." Having had crushes before himself, Kensuke knew how it could hurt to have your love spurn you painfully.

"What do you mean?" Asuka flubbed, "All I said was it would be a good memory for her. After all we get might be getting our bodies back soon and then he'd…" What a minute…no it couldn't be what he was thinking. "I mean, Shinji wouldn't dare peek at me and…" No with the new knowledge of his friend, Asuka knew Shinji far better than that. Shinji was so kind, put up with so much of his shit, and yet she never did anything to hurt him. _It can't be that, it just can't. I treat her too poorly for…I don't deserve…_

Kensuke headed for the door to Touji's room, he wasn't feeling like hanging out any more today. "Look, I shouldn't be the one to tell you this, but somebody has to." Kensuke could see the dread forming on Asuka's face. "Shinji's in love with you Red. She came clean when I tried pulling that 'memory' thing on her with that porn magazine." Stopping just outside Touji's room he added, "She was so upset about how I said you'd never consider her. And you just basically confirmed it by what you said. You crushed her."

Asuka's hand reached out towards the now shut door, "I…what…no…she can't!" His hand fell lifelessly to his side. All this time, Asuka secretly feared Shinji hated him. He wouldn't have been surprised based on all the abuse both mental and physical he used to dole out on her. Falling heavily into one of the chairs in Touji's room, he just looked at the jock, "Is it true?"

As much as Touji wanted to refute it, he couldn't. "I think Kensuke's right. I thought Shin-man might have had a thing for Ayanami a while back, but when you showed up she changed." While Touji still thought Shinji was on the Rei-fence, he couldn't deny how Shinji looked at Asuka or how he treated him. "And I'm betting you feel the same, if to a lesser degree. You treat Shin-man with kid gloves compared to the rest of us. Well you used to." Touji idly flipped through the negatives, not really feeling happy about having them now.

"But how? I used to treat her, the rumors I spread about her, how can she…I mean I don't," Asuka couldn't think straight. Part of him wanted to accept his feelings for Shinji, but another couldn't. That part of him that feared being hurt again by a loved one was strong, but with Shinji he could drop the walls a little and he liked it. But that fear of pain made him lash out and hurt her. "What do I do?"

Tossing the negatives to Asuka, Touji shrugged. "Apologize for starters. As for getting together, I don't see it working between you two. Not like this, you in his body and her in yours." The revulsion at the idea gave him the chills. "Can you picture kissing your own face and not being weirder out all the time…what about other things…can you imagine actually having sex with your own body?"

Asuka just shook his head, he didn't know. "Maybe it…maybe it wouldn't be _that_ bad." But even his own voice lacked conviction. "But you're right, first thing is apologize." But how could he look at Shinji the same way now? Knowing that Shinji loved him, and that deep down he cared for her as well. Could they get over the whole swapped bodies thing and be together intimately? His phone rang, it was Misato, and it was time to head in and get suited up for the only hope of getting his body back.

X-X

"Are you unwell?" Rei asked as she pressurized her suit. While she didn't have to come in to watch the operation, she wasn't going to leave Shinji alone during it. "Your eyes are red, has something gotten in them?"

Rubbing her nose with her arm, Shinji tried to play off her emotional state. She had noticed Rei getting upset or angry whenever something happened to her. "I'm fine Rei I just think I'm nervous." Stupid, she felt so stupid at thinking Asuka could ever actually care for her. _Kensuke was right, I'm just deluded myself. _But accepting that didn't make the pain go away. "Why are you here?"

Kneeling down to look Shinji in the face, Rei felt that new sensation in her chest again. An annoying pinch but not a real physical pain, it happened whenever Shinji was troubled or hurt, often Asuka was involved. "You are attempting to deceive me. Lies are not your strong suit."

Laughing morosely, Shinji let out a long sigh, "Yeah I'm not good at fibbing am I?" With Rei so close to her, Shinji couldn't do anything but gaze into those piercing red eyes. It felt so nice knowing Rei cared; it was a far change from when Shinji first met her. "I realized today that I've been lying to myself." Nodding, "Asuka…well Asuka said a few things that confirmed my suspicion that…while I love him it'll never be reciprocated." Friends yes, they would forever be friends, but Shinji wasn't sure she would have wanted it to stay that way.

"Then he is a fool," Rei said instantly and placed her hand on Shinji's shoulder. "Do not let his failures trouble you. I do not like seeing you hurt, and I cannot protect you from this pain." And that was the crux of it, why Rei was growing to hate Asuka. Not because of his attitude but how Asuka affected Shinji. Rei's only friend was being hurt in such a way she could do nothing to prevent.

Grabbing Rei's hand, Shinji gave it a squeeze, "It's not his fault. I should have realized things long before it got this complicated." Seriously, she had been a fool the believe Asuka could love her the way she cared for him. All she hoped was that if Asuka ever found out he didn't reject her and stop being her friend. "So what do you think, will this work today or am I trapped like this?" It sickened Shinji how much she preferred being female than male. Life made more sense to her this way.

Taking a seat by Shinji, keeping a firm hold on her hand, Rei said simply, "It doesn't matter, you will be my friend regardless." Boy or girl, it didn't matter to Rei. Sure if Shinji became a boy again they could try other bonding rituals that the same sex couldn't, but that didn't matter. "You are you, regardless of what body you are in," and that was who Rei cared for.

"Thanks," was the last thing Shinji said to Rei before Ritsuko came to get them. Neither noticed that Asuka had arrived while they were putting their suits on and overheard the whole conversation. His fist throbbed as he punched the lockers in frustration and for what his careless actions had caused.

X-X

Asuka didn't want to see the world. The experiment went of exactly as it had before, complete with the unconsciousness after. Only question was did he still have little Asuka or was her bra's back on the itinerary. The annoying flesh tube wasn't roused but neither was the extra weight on the chest. Looking at things would fix that, but Asuka wasn't sure if knowing was a good thing. Being a boy had been good, it felt right to be considered the best and not having the men look badly at you for it.

Summing up as much courage as possible, Asuka opened her eyes and saw her familiar mop of red hair blocking her vision. "I'm my again!" she cheered as she groped at her own breasts just to make sure it wasn't a cruel joke of Misato's. "I'm a girl again!" she yelled as she sat up in her bed she saw Shinji rousing on the bed next to hers, Ayanami at his side. "Has he woken yet?"

Rei's eyebrow twitched as Asuka spoke, "So Shinji-kun is back to being a male again then." Getting out of her chair, Rei walked around to Asuka's bed and began to pull the dividing curtain back.

"Hey what are you doing? Don't do that?" the German quipped at Rei's sudden zeal for privacy. "I asked you a question has he woken up yet?" She could see him moving, and his eyes fluttering so if he wasn't awake he would be soon.

"I was going to give you privacy while Shinji and I indulge ourselves. It has been so long since I felt him inside me that I can no longer wait. The strap-on was a pale imitation," Rei said flatly. Unbuttoning her skirt, Rei let her clothing fall away leaving her naked as a jaybird. "If you want to watch, that is fine, but I will not allow you to masturbate to it, Shinji is mine."

Her heart almost stopped beating as Rei pulled back Shinji's sheet and stripped away the hospital gown. "What the fuck are you doing? Shinji and you are a couple? You two…what the hell?" Asuka vented as she watched Rei without so much as a care mounted Shinji and proceeded to wake the boy with a vigorous lovemaking.

Then Asuka woke up.

_Ok…that was one very fucked up dream._ When the room became clear, Asuka saw Misato hovering over and obscuring everything else. That fact alone told Asuka everything.

As much as it pained Asuka to accept, Misato liked Shinji more. So the person Misato would be more concerned about after the operation would be Shinji. So who would be the first person Misato would see to when waking? Well she'd hope that everything worked fine and that she'd have her son back. By seeing Misato's worried face the first thing after waking, Asuka didn't even need to feel Little Asuka had been roused by the dream to know.

"It didn't work, Misato. I'm still Asuka," he said in an emotionless tone. That was it, according to Maya they only chance they had at getting their bodies back had failed. No more angelic remnant existed that would cause the transformation. So unless they got attacked by the exact same angel again it was hopeless. "I'm going to be a boy forever," and this time he could feel tears in his eyes, of joy and of sorrow. Seeing Misato torn from leaving his side to go to Shinji's, Asuka played nice, "Go see her. She'll likely take it worse than me."

Patting Asuka's shoulder, Misato nodded, "I-I'm sorry it failed Asuka." Nerv couldn't keep trying new methods to revert the process. Maya's plan had been their best hope, and with its failure came the acceptance that Asuka and Shinji were permanently switched. Heading over to Shinji's bed Misato saw the girl laying wide eyed with her hands on her chest, a confused expression dirtied her beautiful face. "You know don't you, Shinji."

She just nodded and let her hands fall to the bed. "We're stuck like this." Never again would she know the simple joys of manhood. She'd have to accept the truth that never again would things be as they were.

X-X

Authors Notes

So there you have it, it was a one way ticket for the two. Next chapter is going to be the conclusion as I wrap up all the loose ends. Hope you enjoyed.

Oh and for all you gamers if you care I'm on X-box live/PS3/Steam all with the name Zentrodie, look me up some time and we can blast some zombies ^_^

Ja Mata

Zentrodie (zentrodie-dot-geo-at-yahoo-dot-com)


	8. Chapter 8

Standard Disclaimer

Hope you had a happy 4th of July. Rained like hell here till just before fireworks so at least I got to see them. Cold and damp, but I saw them.

X-X

It Can't Get Worse

Chapter – 8

It had taken two weeks before Hikari had finally had enough of the silent treatment from both Asuka and Shinji. Nobody knew what happened again, one day everything is fine and approaching normal, and then the next neither said a word to anybody. It was worse than the Asuka masturbating incident because now they weren't just ignoring each other they were boycotting humanity. So taking it upon herself, like all good intending busybodies, Hikari got Rei to take Shinji and she hustled Asuka off to her home after school.

Now sitting in her tiny room next to Asuka, Hikari almost lost her resolve. "So are you going to tell me what you did this time to get the wall of silence from Shinji?" It helped if she didn't look at Asuka, looking at her friend made her a little flustered. Nozomi had taken to hiding the moment Asuka stalked into the house, a telling sign. "Everybody is worried about you two," she threw in just to keep from sounding like a harpy.

Asuka had been expecting this conversation eventually. Ever since the realization that he'd never get back his old body, he knew one day he'd have to tell everybody that Lil Asuka was here to stay so submit or get out of the way. "I'm stuck like this, Hikari." The bitterness and anger was gone from his voice, he'd made peace with it. In some strange way Asuka was actually happy it failed though, comparing the two sexes, Asuka preferred being a boy. "I'm never going to get my body back."

Her sympathetic nature instantly kicking in, Hikari took Asuka's hand and held it. "I'm sorry, Asuka. I guess anybody would be a little shaken up after learning that." It did go a long way to explain why both of them were so morose. Feeling Asuka's hand squeezing hers gently, reminded the girl of her previous thought. That if Asuka was going to be stuck as a boy, maybe she had found herself a boyfriend. "Is there anything I can do?"

Falling back on Hikari's bed, still holding her hand, Asuka covered his eyes with the other. "That's only part of things. I'm not upset about that anymore. Being a guy is a lot nicer than I thought it would be. Well, after getting that damn penis to listen to me that is." And that was the bugger of it all, once he wrangled in Little Asuka being a boy had a lot of advantages. "And while I rather not talk about what is really going wrong, I doubt you'll let me leave until I do."

Giggling, Hikari's gaze never left Asuka, "I'm not letting go of you until you tell me everything." She swung the aforementioned appendage lightly, "Friends talk to each other when they have problems, and now I want you to talk to me about what's got you so down." If there was anything she could do to help, Hikari was all for it.

His hand groping at Hikari's sheets, "Shinji," he finally said gruffly. Sitting back up, head low and shoulders hunched, "Did you know she loves me? That despite all the horrible things I've done and said about her, that she actually loves me?" Asuka still couldn't wrap her brain around that one. All his defense mechanisms to keep people away from him, everything he did to protect his fragile inner workings, none of them kept Shinji from feeling the way she did. And that made Asuka love her more in return.

For the first time since sitting down, Hikari couldn't look at Asuka. "I knew, she let the cat out of the bag the other day when we went to the mall." It wasn't betrayal, if Asuka knew already what harm could be done. "So she finally told you?" From the conversation the day before things went to hell, Hikari doubted Shinji would ever own up and confesses. _I guess Asuka turned her down and that's what caused all of this. _

"No, she never told me. Kensuke did after I acted like an extreme ass and pushed her too far during the photo shoot he promised them," Asuka smiled thinly. It was just another drop in the barrel at this point. Shinji never wanted to do the shoot, but had agreed to it to help him out. Touji and Kensuke would have never agreed to hang out with him otherwise at the start, so Shinji took another one for him. And for all her effort and selflessness all she got was a big 'fuck you' to the face.

No new 'Asuka' photos had shown up in her possession of confiscated items, and that left Hikari perplexed. "What happened, Asuka? Why haven't I seen any of these pictures then? I've gotten copies of all the others from students if raided." Photos of students taken without their permission were against school bylaws, which meant Hikari was sitting on a mountain of Rei and Asuka pictures.

Squeezing Hikari's hand harder, almost painfully, Asuka grabbed at his face, fingers on both sides of his head. "I basically said 'there is no way I'd ever consider dating you' without realizing it. And that was while trying to get her to take her top off." Stupid hormones made him do something he'd never wanted to, but it was to late now. "And the real bastard of it is…was…I did like her when she was a boy. I just never let myself admit it."

"What will you do now?" Hikari was almost afraid to know the answer to that. It was written all over his face that something was going to come of this. "Since you're going to be a boy for the rest of your life, what are you going to do?" Could they overcome the oddity of it and still be a couple? Hikari couldn't fathom the amount of strength needed to do such a thing. "You can't just stew on this, you have to do something before it gets worse."

Standing up and ruffling Hikari's hair, Asuka didn't miss the blush it garnered. "I know what I'm going to do. Talking to you made me realize it, and come this time tomorrow everything will be taken care of." Asuka's resolve was firm, no longer on the fence of what was best for him and what was best for her. _I've hurt Shinji so much, its time I do something good._

X-X

Rei didn't know how to feel, but she did understand uneasiness well. Her talk with Shinji had gone much more differently than she expected. Initially she was going to tell her friend to avoid Asuka from now on and that if companionship was needed she would fill that void. What had happened was, Shinji cried. Rei had expected the cause to be either Asuka's spurning her or the fact she was to remain female. But the truth was, Shinji cried because she felt terrible about enjoying the fact she was to remain a woman. As the conversation continue, Shinji said something that struck Rei to her core, 'Friends tell friends everything, so I only feel right telling you I'm glad I'm like this.'

"Friends tell friends everything," Rei parroted as she approached Gendo's door. As her hand paused just inches from the intercom, she felt her resolve waiver. _He may kill me for this, but I no longer agree with his wishes. _Yes the commander gave her life, but to lord that over her was no longer to be tolerated. She had told Shinji the truth about her origin, well as much as she herself knew. Shinji had been shaken by the revelation that Rei was a clone, but to her great relief, Shinji simply hugged her stroked her hair, and said she didn't care and that they were still friends. "No I tell him, I am no longer his puppet."

Going over the results of the test, Gendo was mixed on his care. The last vestiges of his 'parent' mind said to go talk to his daughter, while the superior side of his mind questioned how it would affect her ability to pilot. And the funny thing was, had the experiment been done in Unit-01 it would have worked. It was the soul inside the units that was the final push for the transformation and Yui wanted a son not a daughter. Hearing the chime at his door, "Go away," was all he said into the intercom.

Opening the door anyway, Rei walked across the sarcophagus like room towards her fate. She had not told Shinji about the planned Third Impact for one reason, if she died here Gendo would likely have killed Shinji too, to prevent the spread of the truth. "Sir I request a moment of your time," Rei stood in relaxed military position.

Setting the papers down, feeling strangely that he wanted Maya to die even more than before, Gendo's eyebrow arched. "What are you doing here, I did not send for you." And Rei shouldn't do anything he didn't wish her to do. If he wanted to girl to bark like a dog she was to ask what breed, if he wanted her to dance she was to ask fast or slow, and she was NOT to interrupt him when he didn't wish to be interrupted.

Only a momentary pause signified Rei's self preservation instinct kicking in. It screamed to come up with something other than what she initially came for. It begged to think of how her death would affect Shinji. It pleaded that nothing was worse than what this man would do to her if she went against his wishes. Then Rei saw Shinji's face, saw it wither and die due to the plans this man had for the world and her tongue was thawed. "I came to report I will no longer take part in the planned scenario for Third Impact."

Gendo's head bobbed up and down twice, looking as concerned as a man would be if he had heard the dog took a leek on the carpet. "Then you'll die, and be replaced. Is there anything else you want to add before I send your worthless body back into the abyss I pulled it from?" It was simply a replacement of tools, Rei held no real place in the man's heart, not when he could replace it easily.

Her throat was horribly dry and scratchy which made it hard to talk. "I provided file access to Katsuragi and the JSSDF regarding your plans as well as the location of SEELE which I gained from hacking your private files." Rei had been considering this plan of action ever since she learned about friendship from her books. Friends helped and supported, they didn't turn each other into LCL and merge consciousness with them. "They should be discovering the truth any moment now."

Ok, now THAT pissed Gendo off. "You did WHAT?" He'd have to kill this insipid creature himself now, but he couldn't just kill her, he had to make her suffer! Years of planning and maneuvering ruined by one of his pawns! A pawn he had never questioned before due to the extreme loyalty he instilled in it. "Why would you do that!?" he asked as he proceeded to stalk closer to the doomed child. He'd break her bones, instill such pain that she begged for death, because she essentially killed him if he couldn't reverse the damage she did.

"I could not betray my friend," was all Rei said as she saw her death looming ever closer. It could have been done in a myriad of other ways, but Rei knew she had to act fast to stop Gendo and his warped affection for his late wife. If her life had to be made forfeit for Shinji's continued survival than so be it. "Your plan would have killed not only her but the one she loves, and I could not allow that."

Lightning fast, Gendo's gloved fingers wrapped around Rei's slender neck. "Friends? You don't have friends! You were my plaything! You were to do what I commanded! And no I command you to die!" Harder and harder his squeezed the child's neck. Her hands frantically clawed at him to break free, but his grip remained solid. Her eyes, those blasphemous red orbs puffed out and rolled back as her resistance got weaker and weaker. "I'll recover from this, you did nothing but throw your life away."

As her vision began to fade, the man she once revered as a god turned into her executioner still loomed larger than life before her, she dropped one hand into her shirt and pulled out the bug she planted on herself. It fell to the ground with almost inaudible plop as it hit, Shinji's smiling face was the only thing she could think of, and as a tear trickled down her face…

The door exploded open.

Kaji and a squad of his most trusted Nerv employees rushed the room with guns drawn. The spy had no idea why Rei had given him the listening device a full week before today, but he was glad he hadn't gotten rid of it. Taking great pleasure in it, Kaji freed the young Ayanami by gently applying great force against the side of Gendo's skull, sure his fist hurt after but it was damn ass worth it. As his men arrested Mr. Ikari for crimes against humanity, Kaji proceeded to carry the coughing and gagging Rei to the infirmary. "Kid you just might have saved the fucking planet," he said with his roguish smile, and deep down Kaji half suspected Rei saved his life in the process.

X-X

"Huh, that's odd I just got an email from Ayanami, didn't know she had a computer," Misato said offhanded as Ritsuko handed her a cup of coffee. "So what were you saying about Maya?" Misato blew the steam off her cup with bemused enjoyment.

Watching Maya's temporary replacement, Ritsuko shrugged, "Apparently she had a delayed reaction to the hemp. She called in this morning saying she was going to be out sick for a few days." Typing a few commands to start a system test on the Magi, Ritsuko felt horrible. "If I knew she'd have gotten that bad I'd not have risked giving it to her."

Sipping the beverage she could have sworn was made out of lava at the moment, Misato shrugged. "How could you have known? Anyway she needed something to calm her down or we'd never have…she'd never have gotten the idea." Ouch, sore subject and she brought it up herself. "Kami-sama, I wished it had worked."

Leaning back in his chair, Shigeru locked eyes with Misato, "We all do. But at least now they won't have to worry about 'maybe' and 'what if' scenarios. It's a solid fact now, and they seem to be handling it well enough." Not that he'd really now, he hardly saw the pilots, but easing Misato's mind was just as important. A leader that can't think straight would take the followers over the cliff with them.

"He's right, Misato," Ritsuko had noticed the drop in Misato's happy meter just like everybody else. "Now they don't have to think about 'if I get my body back' or 'when this change is reversed' anymore." Acceptance was a powerful thing, lack of it was disastrous. Knowing Misato better than most, "And just think of all the teasing you can do now!"

Nursing her coffee, Misato wasn't in a very qualitative state. "I know, but just the mood around the apartment is so dark lately. Add to it the whole emotional thing and I don't know whether I need to have a therapy night, get them condoms, or move Asuka out so he doesn't kill Shinji." It was maddening to not know what was going on in there heads.

"Wait, condoms?" Shigeru wasn't the fastest train in the station. "Why would they need those, unless Asuka is taking his pilot status to get himself a lot of tail?" From the rumors he'd heard about Asuka flogging the dolphin with reckless abandon, maybe the boy ranked up from just thinking about it to actually doing it. "Guess a lot of girls his age wouldn't mind being banged by a savior of the world."

Misato's face just dropped, eye eyes bulged open and her mouth hung, "Oh shit I didn't even THINK about that!" Shinji wasn't the type to fuck and run, but with how Asuka was treating his little friend, it was more likely to escalate. "I do NOT want to walk into my apartment to find Asuka with some floozy! Let along if he actually knocked one up! Can you imagine that? Asuka a father at fifteen!?"

"For one thing Shigeru, Misato was talking about Asuka needing them for Shinji, not Asuka boffing his classmates," Ritsuko was trying to limit the collateral damage at this point. Misato was inching into the red zone for temper, and that would be very bad. "And second, if you set Misato off again I will see to it that you get reassigned to sewage removal." Wondering if maybe it was a good idea to give Misato some weed to calm her down, Ritsuko thought better. "Misato you need to calm down, ok? Asuka is NOT going to start shagging everything and you know that."

Near frantic, Misato just slung her mug around and sprayed coffee over everything in range of her. "Sure he won't, just like switching bodies is impossible, just like Shinji not finding me attractive is impossible, why don't we just have Rei go and kill Commander Ikari to have the whole impossible spectrum covered?" Her body started to convulse as she started to break down. Too much stress and too many oddities happened to fast for her to cope with. "I mean what the fuck am I supposed to do now, Ritsuko? I can't do anything for them."

Gently taking the empty coffee mug from Misato's hand, Ritsuko lead her distraught friend to a chair and forced her to sit. "You do what you can, you be there for them. Asuka will have to start talking to Kaji more about guy things, and you'll need to be there to instruct Shinji on women things. They don't know all of it yet, and they'll need you strong and clear headed. Not some ranting crazy woman." She smiled despite herself as Misato started to chuckle.

Taking in one raspy breath, Misato held it in then exhaled. "Oh Kami-sama I needed that." Wrangling herself back in and under normal control, Misato felt substantially better after her little tirade. "Just the idea of Asuka having sex made me think of Shinji having it too…I used to tease her about it so much, hell I even joked that I'd be her first if she wanted practice." It was a really drunken night and she didn't mean it, but the look on Shinji's face had been priceless. "And now I have to realize that for her…it won't be a simple thing anymore." Misato could go without care, second impact taking care of her uterus as it did, but Shinji COULD get pregnant and that would fuck shit right up.

Kneeling down and putting her hands on both of Misato's shoulders, Ritsuko said with a level tone, "Never say anything like that again Misato. The idea of you offering yourself to a teenager is wrong on so many levels that I can't calculate how much shit you'd get into if Asuka took you up on it." And Ritsuko had to admit, a drunken Misato was a very pliable Misato. "I wish Maya was here, she'd know what to say."

At that very moment, a clearly NOT sick Maya was taking a very relaxing bath. Soothing music was playing on her MP3 player and a half eaten pizza lay on the floor next to the tub. Calling in sick was a wonderful idea.

Back at Nerv however, one of the low level security guards was about to make everybody's day just a little bit stranger. "You're not going to believe this! The JSSDF just arrested Commander Ikari for crimes against humanity!" Panic ensued.

X-X

When Shinji got home from her talk with Rei the sun had already set. It wasn't that the talk took that long, she just continued walking around thinking about everything Rei had said. She felt bad, horrible for never finding out the truth about the girl before. Such a sad life, and to think most of it was due to her father's warped mind. No long did Shinji care what the man thought of her, his admiration and respect was no longer something she cared about. Shinji would support Rei as best she could, she promised to keep Rei's secrets, but she could prompt Rei to tell others.

Walking into her room, Shinji came to a dead stop when she noticed Asuka lying on her bed. It wasn't so much that she'd been avoiding Asuka, as much as she'd been giving Asuka space. She accepted the fact that while she loved him, Asuka would never reciprocate it, compounded by the knowledge that she was permanently a girl left her more than wanting private time. Asuka being in her room though meant private time was off the docket. "Asuka?"

"We need to talk, we've been ignoring it long enough," Asuka said without looking at Shinji. Ever since the chat with Hikari, Asuka had been gathering his strength for what he needed to do. After all the pain and heartache he caused, it was time to make amends. _I love that idiot. She's the only person that I can be me around, I owe her this much courtesy. _ Sitting up, "I got some odd frantic call from Misato about her being late so it's just you and me tonight. What better time to take care of things."

Setting her bag down, Shinji sat at her desk and nodded. "What do we really have to talk about? We both know now that the switch is permanent, this is my body now." She held her hand out just to look at it, that seeing the dainty fingers made her comment more real. "I forgave you for pushing me to much about those pictures, and even though this is my body now I won't let Touji or Kensuke take anything you'd not like."

Rolling his legs over the side of the mattress, Asuka sat up. "Kensuke told me, Shinji. And Hikari confirmed it this afternoon." He couldn't help but wince at the panicked look that came over Shinji's entire body. She was shaking like a leaf and eyeing the door. "If you run you're just prolonging it, Shinji." His head sank, "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

The cat was out of the bag, and now all she could do was mitigate the fallout. "What good would it have done?" Her voice, unlike her appearance, was solid. She often feared Asuka learning of her feelings, and as such had plenty of time to think and plan how she would react to it. "Had I told you when I was a boy you would have either laughed at me, called me a pervert, or both."

Reaching out for Shinji's hand, Asuka flinched when she drew it back and away from him. "You're right, Shinji, I most likely would have." The time for illusions and lies was gone, they did to much damage. "It took me becoming a guy to realize how broadly incorrect my opinions were." Leaning back, propping himself up with his arms, "But I have to ask…how could you after everything I've done…why do you care for me?"

Her eyes stung, but she wouldn't cry, not now. Her tears for unrequited love had been shed, and she was determined to be strong. "For the you that you don't show everybody else." Living with Asuka gave Shinji a chance to see the real person behind the mask, and she loved that person. "For the weak Asuka, the stubborn and childish Asuka, and for the strong and valiant Asuka is why I love you. You're so much better than you give yourself credit for, but not for the reasons you care about." It wasn't the beauty, or the intelligence, or even the pride that Shinji cared, it was for the parts of Asuka that the boy thought of as cast off parts to himself.

"So even though I treated you like shit, berated you, and spread terrible rumors about you to the girls you still saw though all that and loved me?" Asuka didn't want to believe it. How could anybody take that abuse and still not HATE the person? Had the tables been reversed, Asuka would have long ago snapped and given up. "After everything I've done, you've not stopped caring…why?"

Sniffing back hard, the irritation in her eyes growing she croaked out, "Because when I saw you succeed at something it made my heart sore. Seeing you happy made me happy. Seeing you hurt made me hurt, and I couldn't stop that despite all that you did to me. I can't turn my heart off like a switch." Smiling bitterly, "And when you were nice to me I thought I was going to die. When you treated me like something other than a servant I had hope."

"Stand up Shinji," Asuka commanded and did the same. Moving in close to the girl, seeing that fear and anxiousness in her eyes, it made what he was going to do all the harder. "I'm going to show you something," was all he said before he kissed her. It wasn't a fierce kiss or a soft kiss, it was soul searching. _I love her, and it's because of that I have to do this. _Breaking away from the girl, her face a lovely pink hue and her eyes showing none of the disgust he had wished was there. "I don't love you, Shinji."

"But…why…you just…why?" Shinji couldn't fathom it! Asuka had just kissed her! From everything they were talking about it was almost as if Asuka wasn't going to reject her, not after everything else. She had poured her soul out and Asuka just stole a kiss and said he didn't love her? Those tears she had so valiantly held back were about to spill over. "Why?"

A moment's courage and it would be done. "I wanted to know how horrid it would be to kiss my old body." A total lie. "I wanted to know if it was remotely possible to not be revolted at the idea, and I just can't. Maybe in time I could have come to love you, but I'd never get over the idea that it was my old body I was touching." The pain was exquisite, but he had accepted this. Shinji was too good for him, and not just on the outside but inside as well. Asuka was more than turned on by the kiss, but he'd never admit it. Shinji deserved far better than him, especially after all the pain he put her through. Better to rip the band-aid off fast and get the pain over than let it stew and fester. "I want to be friends Shinji, nothing more than friends."

"G-..get…out…" Shinji managed to sputter out before finally breaking down into a full blown sob. It had been a little odd kissing her old face, but in time she could have gotten over it! To hell what others would think to, didn't they say love conquered all? But here was Asuka, a person Shinji thought was courage personified, being a coward and running from things. And to think he had the balls to say 'I want to be friends' after crushing her heart into a fine powder and scattering it to the four winds.

His body screamed at him to hug the girl, sooth her troubles away in a sea of kisses and petting, but Asuka was stronger than that. It was for Shinji's betterment that this happen. Asuka wouldn't let her be hurt again because of his stupidity, or his inability to see things clearly. Against all his desires, Asuka walked out of Shinji's room and shut the door. Still hearing the muffled sobs of the girl he loved more than anything, he walked out of the apartment and left her to recover on her own.

X-X

The proceeding days were a whirlwind of allegation, scandal, and mayhem. Not only was Gendo Ikari arrested, but so were the majority of Seele that didn't get into hiding fast enough, and the biggest shock of all was when Fuyutsuki was arrested alongside Gendo as the real mastermind behind the planned destruction of humanity. Rock to its core by not only the ulterior motive behind Nerv but the lose of its leaders, the command staff had a lot of changes to implement.

First order of business was to promote Misato to being the new commander based on past dealings with the angels and superior ability to command her forces. Her second in command was a JSSDF appointed Kaji, that event didn't go down well. Misato threatening to kill 'the fucking spy' before Ritsuko calmed her down enough. Ritsuko had a point, had Kaji not been there Gendo might have succeeded in his plans. After Rei was released from the hospital, Misato convinced the UN to grant the heroin a full pardon for conspiring with the ex-Commander.

Ritsuko escaped being implicated by careful concealment of the facts on Misato's part, and her willingness to assist in the trial against the other members. Misato was at first shocked and hurt by Ritsuko's seeming betrayal, but once the doctor admitted to having been in love with him, Misato was a little more lenient as emotions do cloud the mind.

Maya…well Maya continued to smoke heavy amounts of pot while on the clock. Nobody said anything because while stoned Maya was a savant and capable of coding such miraculous things that it more than made up for her illegal activity.

The LCL factory and the tank of Rei clones were a harder issue to react to. While the clones were not technically alive they weren't dead either. Ritsuko was put in charge of finding a way for them to be classified one or the other. If deemed alive find a way to awaken them and release them, or put them down as painlessly as possible. Lilith was destroyed, Rei was happy to do it.

As for the pilots themselves, things were never quite the same again. It took Shinji three weeks before she would even talk to Asuka, and another four before they got close to being as good of friends the were before Asuka's firm yet unrelenting denial of his feelings. During that time, Rei and Shinji were inseparable, both seeing to the pain of the other.

Asuka, Asuka was lost in a sea of loneliness of his own making. Much to Misato's horror, he did take to the sea of girls that flocked around him. Typically he'd date them for one to two weeks, they often slept with each other after the third date, and always at the girls wanting. But sex wasn't what Asuka wanted, he wanted to flame, the spark that Shinji had put in his heart, but it was never there. It was just a warm body that saw him as a hero and apparently very good lay.

It took Misato's command of Nerv and Kaji's spy network however, to keep Asuka out of jail. It was the true start of the rekindled friendship between Asuka and Shinji, and it cost a young Casanova a punctured lung, three broken ribs, and a smashed wrist. It had started easy enough, Hikari set Shinji up on a date with a friend of hers brother. They all went to an amusement park and things got hectic. The groups got separated and Koji lead Shinji away from the group, believing her naïveté to actually be a subtle form of seduction took her to a love motel, it went badly.

Asuka found Shinji crying in the shower that night. Getting the name out of a very confused Hikari, Asuka proceeded to beat the boy until he was almost barely breathing. Shinji never found out what happened to the boy, just that he transferred out soon after. The end result was Shinji, much to Touji's regret, started dating Rei. They suited each other well, despite obvious limitations.

Watching it all from the sidelines, Hikari could no longer take Asuka's self abuse. It pained Hikari to see Asuka wading through an ocean of wanting girls, but finding nothing but cheap thrills. Finally one day, Hikari forced Asuka to confess what happened between the Shinji and him. Hikari never looked at Asuka the same way again, and it made her love the boy all the more. Living a life of imposed self hatred rather than risk hurting the one he truly loved…it ate Hikari's heart.

A full year after the accident, all the angels defeated with only minor damage mentally and physically to the pilots, Hikari asked Asuka out. He accepted. It was hard at first, Hikari could tell Asuka would always love Shinji more than her, but in time she garnered a place in the boys heart that rivaled Shinji's.

For all the pain and misery in his life, Asuka was happy with Hikari at his side. Shinji became the close friend they used to be, only with Rei being oddly at her side, and made Asuka wonder who was the pitcher and who the catcher was, but he never asked. He made a vow to never let Shinji know that he loved her, he would never risk harming her, and what good would it do him to rattle the Ayanami/Ikari cage. He joked that maybe in time he'd be the surrogate for their child if they got married; only he'd have to administer it directly.

Rei slapped him hard, very hard, but Shinji laughed. It had been a long and strange road to get to where they were, but they all agreed that it could have been worse.

The End

X-X

I can hear it already 'you rushed the ending!' And I have to say to you…not really. My real intention was to end with Asuka walking away and give her a brief monologue about how and why he did it.

I HATE milking things longer than they have to be for pointless drama. Everything that happened after that point I believe was fairly standard. I hope you're not to angry at that, and I'd really be happy if you understood and agreed with me.

Well it was a long odd road to write this thing too…keeping the 'him'/ 'her' correct was a battle I hope I won more than lost. Anyway, thanks for reading this oddity and continue to support me in my other ventures of fandom.

Addendum -

Well the hope that people understood why I ended this as I have seems to be shot. But to be honest I did expect more negative than positive. So I'll be honest...well more honest than before. I ended this story abruptly mainly because I didn't like the direction it was headed in. I started it planning a light humor and lighthearted story. But the deeper I got into it the more dramatic and darker it became. Rather than continue in that vane against what I intended I pulled the plug before it got worse. In the end I'm likely more disappointed with this conclusion than you are, but they can't all be winners. I got some good parts off I feel, more good than bad so I'll chalk this up to a success rather than failure, but I do apologize for the sudden 'the end' that it got.

Really sorry for those of you that wanted the Shinji/Asuka ending, but to be fair it was focused on them, and even though the didn't end up together they were the strongest 'couple' in the story's conclusion. And yeah the majority of this last chapter was just a 'tie up the loose ends so I can move on' because I will not leave a story unfished, even if i don't care for it. Hopefully I didn't piss enough of you off that you don't read my next few ideas, but if I have I only have myself to blame.

Ja Mata

Zentrodie


	9. Alternate Ending

Standard Disclaimer

I said if I ever had a good idea for an alternate ending to this I'd write it and so here we are. Yeah its been awhile since this was finished and I'm sure a lot of you have written it off, but I like the idea for this and I hope you do to. As for me…Xmass shopping is almost done but it took a big chunk out of the ol' wallet. Hope yours is going better

X-X

It Can't Get Any Worse

Alternate Ending

Just sitting in his school chair again felt strange, and not the bad or good kind just strange. But Shinji had to admit it felt closer to right than not. The whole room was aflame with gossip and conversation, mostly directed at either Asuka or him. What put the young Ikari off was how the girls were pointing at him and giggling behind covered hands. Was that going to be a good thing or not, Shinji wasn't sure he wanted to know.

"So man you have to tell us…how did it happen? Last week you came in here saying you were going to be a girl forever and now you're back to your old self," Touji asked as he bounced in his seat. Hand on the chair and hand on the desk, Touji was overwhelmed with energy and it showed as his body ricocheted around as if it were made of rubber.

Fingers on his keyboard, Kensuke was busy typing everything Shinji said into an unknown document. "Agreed, Shinji, one minute Touji is confused by the idea he was attracted to you and wanted to ask you out and now you're back to the winning team," Kensuke sagely ducked under Touji's fist that went wild sending the jock spiraling to the ground. Never mind the fact Kensuke had every inkling of asking the previously female Shinji out as well.

Now that was just a creepy thought, Shinji decided. Either of his male friends asking him out when he had borrowed Asuka's body left a little disgusting feeling deep inside. "Well it's kind of funny actually. We were having a sync test and I just had the notion 'we always tried Unit-02, why not Unit-01," Shinji started. He would never know his mother's soul was screaming holy-hell to get that damn German into the entry plug. Yui wanted her son back…and to have said son dominate Kyoko's little girl.

Rolling his hand over, Shinji continued, "So I asked Misato if we could just try having Asuka in my plug. She agreed and twenty minutes later we blank out and get our bodies back. Nobody could really explain it either." With his story told, Shinji sunk deeper into his seat to avoid the odd stares he was getting. "Uh guys is it just me or are the girls paying us more attention than they should?" he tugged at his collar sheepishly.

Accepting Kensuke's hand to help him up, Touji yanked the nerd to the ground with him just out of spite. "Down here everything looks the same, now if they were to stand over us I could tell you their panty color though," Touji joked from his horizontal vantage point. Sitting up, the jock gave the room a good once over, "Damn you are right…shit you're either really popular or the devil is reaffirming her lies about you."

Asuka, oh how Shinji didn't want to think about that girl. Her beautiful face, scary wit, and harsh and uncaring heart that crushed his to a fine red paste, snorted it up her nose, and spat it out. Helping both guys up, Shinji tried not to let his depression show, "Asuka wouldn't do that…again. Maybe they're just confused by me being a boy again. While I was a girl we started to get along pretty good towards the end." The invitation to several sleepovers had been nice, but all declined out of Shinji's fearing everything female.

Fixing his glasses, Kensuke scoffed, "Dude she destroyed your image the day she showed up, threatened you while you were in her body, and you think she doesn't want revenge? Why do you keep defending her?" Looking across the room at the devil incarnate, Kensuke stuck his tongue out at the girl that wasn't paying him any attention at all. Then his jaw unhinged as he tapped Touji's shoulder, "D-d-dude! Asahina Kourijo just walked into our room!"

Wiping his head so hard it made a loud pop, if Touji's eyes could pop out they would have collided with the woman walking into the room. "Dude…that face…those legs…those-those massive melons!" Touji salivated as he moaned. "Is…is she coming over…Shin-man duck and cover!" Touji joked as the girl spotted them and adjusted her bearings in accordance.

Coming to a halt just before Shinji's desk, Asahina balled her fist under her chin. Just the same height as the young Ikari, Kourijo had a baby face with a beauty mark under her left brown eye, flowing black hair that went just past her shoulder, and a bust that sent every other girl to shame. "I-Ikari-san, w-would you like…if you're not busy…tomorrow would you like to go out on a date with me?" the timid girl asked with a full blush adoring her lovely features.

Stupefied, Shinji just sat there gazing into the soft contours of her unblemished face. Asahina was a year older than him, but was thought of as an idol among the boys, so why in god's name was she asking him out! "K-Kourijo-san are you sure you want to ask ME out? I mean…" Shinji turned to both Kensuke and Touji and found them drooling. Some help they would be, suckers for a damn pretty face and big breasts. Having had breasts, not as big though, Shinji more sympathized with the back pain Asahina had rather than wanting to pretend to be a baby again.

"He accepts," Rei said simply as she took her seat next to Shinji. "Shinji is suffering from a small bout of confusion and low self-esteem. What time will he meet you and where?" Rei followed up as she flipped open her small notepad to write down the details.

Gasping at the ninja like materialization Rei just demonstrated, Asahina took a step back from the girl with a modest bounce of her assets, Touji nosebleed and fell over again. "W-well I was thinking a movie at four followed by a nice meal after, I would pay of course or we could go to one of my father's restaurants," the timid girl alternated between Rei and Shinji with confusion and anticipation running rampant in her expression.

Jotting down the details, Rei nodded and added, "Will there be a sexual encounter as well? Current standards dictate second or third date initiating exploration contact to the genitals, but it is not uncommon for a first date experience. Do you have any allergies to condoms or other articles related to 'safe sex', or are you on the pill?" Rei gazed up at the girl without flinching or showing any sign of embarrassment.

"Rei-chan! You can't ask her…its rude to insinuate such things," Shinji's yelp was palpable and his own face near bursting. Oh how he felt sorry for Asahina, having unwittingly stepped into Rei's domain of lack-of-delicacy. "You'll have to forgive Rei-chan, she can be a little blunt or obtuse in her thinking. Four sounds lovely Kourijo-san, I'll meet you at the station?" he had to get the girl to leave before Rei started asking about sleep patterns or if she wanted to be on top or bottom.

Babbling as the haunted look at Rei melted into blissful at Shinji, Asahina smiled wonderfully at the boy. "Thank you Ikari-san, I'll see you there," she gushed and ran out of the room before the strange pale girl could embarrass her more.

Handing Shinji the details she had written down twice, one for her to keep and one for Shinji, Rei took Shinji's hand gently. "Judging by her capillary response and vexed expression, if you were to push her you could get to what is referred to as third base," Rei analyzed. "Her father is the owner of a great many businesses, she would make you an excellent wife if you desire a timid rich girl," her eyes softened as she met with Shinji's.

It was just Rei being Rei, but some part of Shinji suspected she wasn't being very truthful in her comments. True Asahina was heavily sought after, Shinji had never paid much attention to the girl. His heart had been set on Asuka, until that awkward kiss where the then boy crushed that hope. "What about you, Rei-chan, do you want me to go out with her, or are you just saying what you think is the most 'logical'?" he knew Rei far better than anybody now, and he wasn't going to hurt or ruin that bond.

Finding Shinji's two male friends in similar states of shock and hormonal confusion, Rei rubbed her arms together. "I only wish for you to be happy. You are my friend, and after what happened with…" Rei turned to Asuka who quickly turned away from gazing at the two of them. "I do not wish to see you hurt like that again, if Asahina fails I will assist you in finding another suitable mate, if one cannot be found I will take that place while we continue searching," Rei said with as much conviction, and a hint of something unknown, as she could.

Ok, Rei just offered to bang him while he looked for another girlfriend, yes Rei's friendship was going to be very strange. Just don't act on it, talk to her about things…again…after school about how normal relationships are and maybe he wouldn't die of a heart attack. Hoping to douse the slow building desire to wander off with the quite lovely albino and say to hell with other women, Shinji was reminded of just how annoying having a penis could be. "Uh, Rei-chan, any idea why so many girls are looking over here, Kourijo-san aside?" he could hope it would act as ice water.

Flipping through several pages of her notes, Rei proceeded to ruin Shinji's day and self image. "My spying device in the locker room denotes many of them wish to couple with you either as a fling or as a significant other. Your time in Soryu's body proved to destroy the rumors she set against you and her acts of barbarism while in your body proved you are capable of far greater feats of strength than you let on. To put it simply, you are popular and sought after," Rei shut her book and proceeded to lean against Shinji's shoulder.

Check please, Shinji wanted to run screaming into the hills and bury himself in a cave in the mountains. He didn't want to be popular, hell he wanted to be invisible. And catching sight of Asuka looking over at him…well that was just the cherry on the crap Sunday. Stupid emotions, why couldn't he turn them off! He was asked out by the damn Goddess of Tokyo-3 junior high and he was still pining after the Devil. Life was confusion…and Rei was adding napalm to the fire.

X-X

Laying on the couch, beer on the floor within hands reach, Misato scratched her belly and in the processes hiked up her shirt. "Man or woman, Shinji-kun, you were a born cook," she burped happily as the talking heads continued to prattle on. "So things go over as you expected them to at school?" she asked spying the young lad on the chair next to the couch. He was more sullen than Misato wanted, but that could be remedied if she played her cards right.

Looking up from his school book, homework never got a holiday, Shinji shrugged. "Touji and Kensuke were confusing as ever. I didn't want to know they both considered asking me out if I was stuck like that," Shinji shuddered as he spoke. "Rei…Rei said some really embarrassing things to a girl, and that's about it," Shinji quickly turned back to his book at the mention of 'girl'.

Green lights go, we have our teasing topic number one. Shinji mentioned a girl, girl that spoke to Rei, Rei was practically attached to Shinji's hip, meaning a girl approached Shinji! Propping herself up to a half seated half laying position, Misato's grin was lecherous. "So a girl asked you out today huh? What did your little shadow have to ask her? Oh and was this girl cute?" Misato scooped up her beer and took a sip. While she enjoyed sharing girl time with Shinji…this was better. Misato was more wanting of a son than a daughter.

Sighing deeply, and accepting his fate, Shinji shut his book and set it on the coffee table. "Yes a girl asked me out tomorrow, to see a movie and maybe get something to eat. I-I guess you could say she was cute," Shinji ran his finger under his nose and reclined heavier into his chair, legs squeezed together. "And Rei was just being Rei is all," the desperation to change topics was clearly evident in his voice.

Misato heard that desperation and did what she always did, used it to fuel her engines of mass humiliation. "Oh Shin-chan you need to tell me what Ayanami said, if you don't I'll just call her over to tell me in person. Then she'd want to stay the night again, and what did she say last time she asked? Something about washing your back?" Misato's grin widened as she sat up taller, legs only taking up two cushions now. She missed this, just palling around with him. Then a small fear of hers came back and a nicer idea.

Head falling down, Shinji shut his eyes and swallowed hard. "She asked Kourijo-san if she intended to have sex with me on the date, and if she had allergies to latex," Shinji shrank deeper into himself as the teasing continued. "Poor girl almost fainted at Rei's questions, so I agreed to the date just to get her out of Rei's strike zone," Shinji confessed.

Now that was a name Misato hadn't expected to hear, and damn if it wasn't a dozy. Kourijo's owned a commanding share of the Yebisu corporation, not that Misato followed the corporations news as divine doctrine, that would make her an alcoholic maniac! Surely she wasn't that far gone. "So the ever attractive and darling daughter of Genma Kourijo has her sights set on you, and our darling Ayanami asks her if she wanted to sample the goods? Is that all Ayanami said?" Misato took another sip of her brew…then another.

Hearing the door open, Shinji held himself higher in his chair to watch as Asuka walked into the room. They met eyes and a moment of tension filled the room, before Asuka walked off without a word to her room and shut the door. "Rei said she'd make a good wife, and if Kourijo-san didn't she'd help me find one," Shinji fell back into his seat defeated yet again.

Asuka, damn Misato was starting to get sick of that girl. Whatever Asuka did to Shinji before the first attempt at fixing things must have been a real number. She hadn't seen one occasion where her two wards exchanged a single word. Hell Asuka didn't feel fit to talk to either of them, and Misato was fine with that. Let the prima Dona be off in her own world of stuck-up bitchness.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Misato grabbed the fringes of her shirt and started pulling it up. She had to know, and if it helped lighten Shinji's depression it was well worth the moment of embarrassment. She wouldn't tease him if it would do him harm, and even now she could see a smile threatening to blossom. "Well Shin-chan if you can't find a wife in four years I'll take one for the team and walk you down the aisle myself. We can't have our saviors being single and targeted by women of ill repute," what worried Misato was the idea didn't sound that bad.

Eyes popping open, Shinji went from the news to Misato in nanoseconds. Mouth moving like a fish on dry land, the young Ikari's face was a mighty tomato of self restraint. "M-M-Misato-san you sound like Rei! W-what…are…" Shinji's voice lost its power weakening from a mighty roar to a kitten's pitiful meow.

Flashing Shinji her black lace bra, Misato just had to know if Shinji found her attractive or not. Asuka had made it painfully clear that while in Shinji's body, Misato had to hid her undergarments or Asuka would have used them. But Shinji, never did Misato get that type of reaction…and it was so much fun to see him act so befuddled. "Something wrong Shinji-kun? Something on my face?" she asked as nonchalant as if she were talking about Pen-Pen's growing weight problem.

"W-w-what are you doing!" Shinji's shrill yelp was near deafening. "I can-can see your…you hitched your b-bra up with the…" Shinji's eyes were transfixed on something Misato did on accident. Looking away quickly, Shinji grabbed at his neck, "H-how did you…scar?" Shinji took several deep breaths.

Red faced, Misato hadn't expected to go full Monty on the lad, just a quick peek at her bra to gauge his reaction. Well the cat was out of the bag, if the cat was her smaller than normal brown nips. Judging from that shout though, Misato's concerns were ill founded. It was a satisfactory reaction, Misato's self appointed title of sexiest mama on the planet was reaffirmed. "I'll tell you about the scar another time, Shinji, I rather keep today light, if you don't mind," Misato fixed her bra and put her shirt back down.

"I'm going shopping with Hikari, I won't be back till late," Asuka announced as she left her room and headed right for the door. Not waiting for an answer, the German was outside before either television bound human could recognize the blur.

Falling back into the couch, Misato blew the hair that feel into her eyes out. "That girl is has a thing for ruining moods, am I right Shinji?" Misato polished off her beer and smashed the can with her hand. It didn't take a genius to see how Asuka affected Shinji, and with the girl's whirlwind approach lately it was painfully obvious that Shinji was the one paying the damages. Maybe letting Rei sleep over wouldn't be a bad thing, either Rei would offer emotional support or the two of them would bump uglies something fierce. That should brighten both teens' days, good old fashion nookie to chase the loneliness away.

Getting out of his chair, Shinji headed to the kitchen. "Think I'll take a bath, and Misato," Shinji hung at the door for a second, on hand on the frame. "If that little show was for what I thought it was…I do find you very attractive. But, like Asuka, out of my league," Shinji's hand slowly glided down as he spun and headed out of room.

Sitting up, Misato ground her teeth in frustration. "Damn that girl! Damn, damn, damn it!" Misato understood slightly better now. Shinji loved Asuka and Asuka shut him down. For what reason she couldn't know, Asuka had shown to like him too, but something had crawled up Asuka's ass and made a nice home there. "Maybe I should offer to wash his back too…" Misato turned to the bathroom then scoffed. "That'd make things worse, he doesn't want pity," she resisted the urge to call Rei over after making a stop to buy a really large blue bow. A talk with Asuka was in the roster though, she had to find out just what happened.

X-X

Hikari wasn't the biggest fan of the arcade, all that noise and lights were more an annoyance than a sense of pleasure. But today was the first time out with Asuka back as a girl, so Hikari let her friend chose the location. Being a good observer, Hikari couldn't help but notice things weren't rosy for her friend now that she was a girl again. Shinji had spoiled the other girls with his gentle personality, and now that Asuka was back to normal…they weren't so apt to accept the girl.

"Asuka are you going to tell me what is bother you, or are you going to keep killing those…are they ninja's?" Hikari pointed at the screen where Asuka was disemboweling pajama clad women with impossible figures. Leave it to men to make women so horribly proportioned for their entertainment, Hikari would never understand men. Though…if Asuka wasn't going to aim for Shinji, maybe she could. He proved to be cut from a different cloth.

Smashing her finger down on the button in rage, Asuka shrieked, "Damn cheating game! They shouldn't be able to follow a double combo with a triple! Stupid game." Sulking away from her digital defeat, Asuka fixed her hair disrupted from her thrashing. "And I'm not bothered by anything Hikari, everything is exactly as I wanted it to be," though her scowl proved different. "Those fickle girls, that game, everything is just what I deserve," she sulked.

Wandering towards the safer areas, less people and less expensive things for Asuka to break, Hikari guided her friend away from all the squishy things. Maybe Hikari should have paid for another round of video game violence before tempting to talk to Asuka. "Then why did you demand I come out here, why did you break your pen at school when that girl went to talk to Ikari, and why do I feel a killing aura?" Hikari mentioned as a cold streak went down her back.

Jutting her dainty finger at the crane game, Asuka's face scrunched up in abstract patterns a scholar of Lovecraftian design would faint seeing. "Going to win a dog so I can rip its head off," Asuka said simply as she grabbed a few coins. Briskly passing a few other girls, Asuka glowered at a pair at the machine she wanted. "Move please," she said as she hip checked them out of her way. "And that little slut is just after him to increase her social status, everybody knows it. Asahina's just another floozy," Asuka spat out as she sank her coin in.

Leaning against the machine adjacent to Asuka's, Hikari found herself laughing. Classic Asuka, attack what either annoyed or scared her. "So you're ok with her dating Ikari-kun then? If she's just a floozy, he's a pervert, and you don't care what is the harm right?" Hikari wasn't above reverse psychology, but playing with Asuka's mind was like walking into a minefield drunk and blindfolded.

Dog caught, dog moved, dog fell, Asuka slammed her palm against the machine. "I don't care who that id…I don't care who Shinji deems worthy of his dick. Stupid tube was more annoying than it was worth," Asuka retorted as she sank another coin in. "And did you see Ayanami? I swear she was about to go at him in the classroom. Girl is broken in the head, both of them are. I'm so glad to have my body back so I can keep it safe from him," she wasn't fooling anybody.

It was a dumb move, it was going to cause nothing but problems, but Hikari couldn't think of any alternative. "So you wouldn't mind if I asked him out then? Maybe you can tell me where I can touch him to get the most out of 'casual contact' because somebody is going to get him," Hikari took a step out of Asuka's range just in time as she felt the wind of Asuka's hand slide by. "All the girls are talking about him, Asuka, your rumors are all but garbage now. They see him as quite the catch," Hikari felt the sudden urge to duck so she did…again Asuka's absent minded hand flew over head.

Damn dog was caught on the lip of the stupid catch and she couldn't get it off. "Ok so maybe I am upset about this. Maybe I do love that idiot, but I feel I don't have the right to act on it because of how I treated him in the past," Asuka plunked another coin in and tried again. "That doesn't give me the right to go up to him now, after all but pulling his heart out through his nose, cooking it, and feeding it to that damn bird, does it Hikari?" Asuka turned, red eyed, to her friend.

Oh holy hell, this wasn't something Hikari expected. It was an explosion alright, but not of violence and smashed screens, maybe stolen dogs, but of emotion. Asuka actually admitted it! And well…Hikari was dumbfounded because Asuka had a point. "Have you talked to him about this? Maybe if he still cares," she trailed off with a shrug. Since Shinji hadn't leapt at any of the women in waiting it was possible the boy's feelings still existed.

Half in the catch half off, Asuka was seething at the audacity of the dog and gravity not to bow down to her. "When I get that accursed thing I'm going to rip out every seam and sew them in backwards," Asuka dropped yet another coin in. "And why should he care at all, Hikari? I lied about him, treated him like garbage, and lied when he confessed! I had my chance and I squandered it like I do everything good in my life. I should get Wondergirl to come over in nothing but a big blue bow and watch as they shag on MY bed," she started sniffing.

"Have your hormones not gotten back to normal Asuka, because that was a mighty perverted thing to hear from you," Hikari quipped lightly more to brighten the mood. It was so odd to see the high and mighty Asuka, back to her original glory, so humbled and broken. Added Asuka was never so forthcoming with personal info, something was off. "Look, I'm going to go get us something to drink and we can continue outside alright?" Hikari scampered off. Grabbing herself a fruit juice and Asuka's favorite melon soda, she headed back and nearly dropped them.

Some boy was standing there talking to Asuka, an attractive boy, but something about him screamed danger. Not wanting to get in Asuka's way, if the German chose to lash out at a flesh and blood target rather than plush, Hikari just hoped Asuka didn't kill the boy.

"So we meet again, my dear, your friends not with you today?" Suzuki asked casually as he put one of his hands on the machine locking Asuka's left escape route. "After last time, and that boy's freak out, I was afraid I'd never get the chance to apologize to you," he smiled as his prey turned around.

A flame was burning in Asuka's eyes, not only had she finally won the stupid dog, but fate had blessed her with a chance opportunity. "So my wayward prince has returned. No, Touji and Kensuke, aren't here today. So how would you like to apologize to me?" Asuka cutely swayed from side to side with her hands laced together.

Hiding behind a trash bin, Hikari watched on with the fascination of watching a train wreck. Something was going to happen, something big and she wanted to see it. Asuka never acted that way, not even on actual dates, so something about this boy was causing the freshly returned female to act strange. Holding her breath, Hikari leaned forward to hear well.

Putting his other hand up, both on either side of Asuka's head, Suzuki leaned in dangerously close. His composure had all the pomp and swagger of a predator that had just killed its prey. "Maybe some karaoke? I know a great place where they'll let us stay as long as we want in a private booth," he leaned in as his prey's head lowered and her eyelashes batted.

"Is that a roll of coins in your pocket, or are you just thinking of me naked?" Asuka said in a weak and powerless tone unfitting her status as hellion. Putting a hand on his shoulder, Asuka shoved him back, "Is this how you get your kicks, hitting on women just to drag them off to take them?" She advanced on the boy that put his hands up in defense, "Well is it? Do you want this body? Do you envision sticking that prick of yours in something such as this?" Asuka gestured down to herself.

Waving his hands, uncertainty wafting over him, the lad just took several steps back. "T-this a trick question? I-I think you're attractive yes, so I won't lie and say the idea isn't unpleasant," back further and further he stepped until he hit the row of machines behind him. "Did you want to skip the singing and go straight to a love motel?" he offered with a hint of hope.

Leaning in a hairs breadth away from the boy's lips, Asuka stopped. "Yes I do want to go to a love motel, just not with you," she smiled and pulled away from the boy now sliding down the machine. "You're not worth my time or effort, why he was afraid of you I guess is a sign that he is more gentle than me…why he needs me to protect him…why I…" Asuka stopped. "Hikari stop hiding, I'm not going to kill him, and I want to go," Asuka huffed and walked out of the arcade.

Good for her, Hikari couldn't help but feel. Something had changed thanks to that odd man's non-to-subtle pick-up attempt. She had heard Asuka clear as day, and maybe just maybe her friend was going to do something about it. At least try, and whatever came of it, well Hikari wasn't going to condone the two of them making love, the would know best how to please the other if nothing else. Catch up to Asuka, Hikari just let the girl continue to blow off steam, and eventually found herself praying Asuka could keep the courage to act.

X-X

The whole day sucked one massing goat wang, and yet still Asuka stayed in the living room listing to the television prattle on. Misato gave her a damn earful before retreating to her room to drink or sleep or whatever the hell Misato did in that room, Asuka didn't know or care. Who was Katsuragi to tell her what to do anyway, it was her life and if she wanted to live like a bitch it was her divine authority to do so. Acting as she had didn't get her friends, or accolades, but it did limit the hurt.

Hurt like the pain she was feeling right now, waiting for Shinji to get back from his date. His date with a girl that had looks, money, and a demure and ladylike attitude. You know, the things Asuka either didn't have or wouldn't show to others. So why that idiot wouldn't choose Asahina over her, the girl that already spurned him multiple times, was silly. "Life sucks, then you die cold and alone," she rubbed her arms as the gooseflesh broke out.

And yet Asuka clung to that one thread of hope like a lifeline. Clung to the idea that maybe, just maybe some part of Shinji had held out hoping things would change. Ayanami didn't think so, let Asuka know point blank what was thought of her. "Well jokes on you Wondergirl, it's not me who is hurting Shinji, it's him hurting me, not that he knows it," Asuka huffed and changed the channel again. It was well past ten Shinji should have been home an hour ago.

Stopping on a bikini volleyball game on the sports channel, Asuka actually laughed. "To think I used to watch this when nobody was looking," Asuka just rolled her eyes now at the bouncing flesh on the screen. "Idiot is probably getting some right now, girl was likely a closet pervert and drug him off to have her way with him," oddly Asuka liked the idea of Shinji enjoying the pleasures of humanity, only she wanted to be the one. Funny how being in his body made her realize so many things she had been mistaken about.

Life, love, sex, men, women, and so many other things she saw differently after her brief time as a boy. "Masturbating was a lot easier and faster, that's for sure," Asuka flipped off the television, nothing was good at night if you didn't have a little friend to entertain. Grabbing one of her long forgotten romance novels, Asuka idly flipped though it with disinterest.

Then the door opened and shuffling could be heard, it was show time.

Hopping to her feet, Asuka scurried off to catch her prey before it had the chance to escape into its hole. "You're late, Ikari," Asuka said loudly enough to make her presence known to her query. She didn't have a plan really, winging it seemed the best thing to do as estimating Shinji's actions proved fruitless. "You've some explaining to do," she said as she rounded the corner to see Shinji fixing the cast off shoes.

Adding his satchel to the others, Shinji didn't flinch so much as he bounced off the wall at Asuka's sudden appearance. "Oh, I didn't think you'd…be waiting," he sounded off half afraid. Moving to walk past Asuka, he stopped as she mimicked his motions and to keep him penned in. "T-the meal lasted longer because her father wanted to meet me," his tired voice was barely an octave above audible.

"Did you kiss her, fondle those big jugs of hers, or did you hit a homerun?" Asuka leaned against the wall, but made it clear she'd pounce if he tried moving. The fact he went on a date was evidence he wasn't gay, so Asuka was just gauging how far away from him she really was. "Did her father offer you a room to do it in?" she stuck her head forward and sneered.

His fists clenched and unclenched as he observed the floor mat. "Why are you doing this to me Asuka? Why ask me if I kissed her, which I did at her advances and it was nice?" Shinji's body trembled as he spoke. "Do you enjoy tormenting me that much that you won't let my try and find any happiness?" more clenching and unclenching of his fists.

Ok, so the brash approach was a total failure. Plan-b? Wait she didn't have any plan-b, so stick with the winging it girl! What more harm could she do anyway? Flipping the light switch on, Asuka wasn't enjoying the building fury in her often meek as a door mouse flat mate. "I'm asking because I want to know, Shinji, that's why. Are you going to see her again or was this a one time thing?" she tried to sound sincere, since she was it was pretty darn convincing.

Trying to walk past her again, Shinji stopped an inch away from the sudden roadblock that was Asuka Langley Soryu. "I don't know, she seemed really nice and seemed to really like me," Shinji stepped to the side only to keep being blocked. "What do I have to say to you to have you leave me alone, Asuka? Just tell me and I'll say it, and we can continue avoiding each other, just as you want," he finally looked up at her.

Oooh…not good, he looked beaten and broken and Asuka actually didn't want to do that to him. Wasn't this why she planned to leave him find another happiness? Because she was just such a vindictive bitch, hiding herself away from everybody that might offer her any source of warmth. "Tell me, do you like her, and don't give me some bullshit like 'maybe in time' or some other lame line like that. Cut the crap and tell me, do you like her?" Asuka crossed her arms and bore down on those tranquil blue eyes.

Eyes closed for a moment, when Shinji opened them again they were bereft of fear. "No, Asuka, I don't like her like that. She's a great girl yes, but not…not my type," against all rationality Shinji actually split a wide smile. "You're my type, Asuka. Aggressive, assertive, yet capable of tenderness and warmth, but what goo…" Shinji found himself unable to speak thanks to Asuka's tongue in his mouth.

Tasty, even more so than it tasted when she was in his body. His tongue danced in her mouth, swirled about like a viper, and she drew his body against hers in a crushing hug. No more lies damn it! He said he liked aggressive, so how was this for aggressive! Rei could eat a damn boot, Misato could stuff her objections up her ass, and the other girls could get in line! Shinji was HERS!

Then, strangely, Asuka felt Shinji's fingers wafting down to her thigh. They crossed her knee to behind the joint and pressed faintly. That simply touch, Asuka's legs went week, her body hot and fuzzy, breaking free of him, "W-what did you…ooh that feels good." Why had she never known she had such a tender spot before? Wait…Shinji found it, that means he… "You pervert, you touched my va..."

Shinji didn't let her finish, because at times he could be assertive too. Spinning quickly he pushed Asuka up against the wall, his hand moving from her knee to just above her navel. Breaking the embrace, "You like that, I found this one on accident too…" he pushed gently.

BINGO! Asuka's whole body went limp as the boy she loved was touching her in such innocent places yet invoking such crazy responses. "Shinji…I'm sorry…sorry for lying to you. I wanted, wanted you happy and thought I would only bring pain. Didn't think I deserved this," she peppered his face with fairy light kisses. "But if you want to try, know that you're mine, and I'm…I'm yours if you'll have a bitch like me," she offered herself openly and without hidden motives. She was never so fearful of anything in her life, not even when facing death in her Eva, of the silence that filled the room as she waited for her answer.

"If you hurt me like you did again, Rei'll kill you and wear your skin as a suit," Shinji joked lightly as he scooped Asuka off her feet. Carrying her into the living room he set her down gently on the couch. "Sorry, but I do have a confession too," he looked away bashfully.

Shinji could say he was an alien plotting to destroy humanity and Asuka would have asked for a gun to kill the filthy human scum. Why this boy hadn't spurned her and laughed at her confession, Asuka didn't want to know let alone ask. She was going to take what she was given and never look back. "If you tell me Ayanami and you experimented with lesbianism I'm going to kill her," Asuka giggled.

In one deft move, Shinji's hand hit a spot between Asuka's legs than sent the girl over the edge and made a dainty mess. "Found that in the shower on accident too," he said hushed as he kissed her nose.

"Oh fuck her or get to bed you two! I have to work in the morning!" Misato yelled through the crack in her door.

Oh this was going to be fun, in ways Asuka never thought of before, so many delightful ideas. But not today, she was to unnerved to function properly. "Carry me to my room, slave, your mistress finds herself a little…" Asuka gestured down at her rather distressed state of existence.

Picking her up again, Shinji obliged. "As my lady requests, I shall obey," he replied seriously. As he laid her down on her bed, Shinji's hand traced her cheek, "Asuka…I love you."

She didn't doubt it, didn't think it was just a hormonal high, Shinji was incapable of lying to her. Swallowing hard, Asuka fought against her inner self, that part of her that screamed for independence. "I love you too, Shinji, it just took me longer to realize it," she playfully patted his cheek and shooed him out of the room. They'd have time for other things later, right now she needed to get her head straight. It was a dream, so much so she was afraid she was going to wake up as a boy.

But when she woke, the smell of her favorite breakfast wafting through the house, she knew it was reality. He truly did deserve better than her, but who was Asuka to argue in Shinji's tastes in women. Some men just like being dominated by strong women, and Asuka thanked all the gods that Shinji's taste in women put her on the top of the pyramid. She wasn't going to let him go, not now, not ever again. And if the time did come where Rei asked…maybe…just maybe…Asuka would take one for the team to payback Shinji some of the karma due.

The End…again.

X-X

Authors notes

Yeah this is a lot happier and in line with standard body-swapping stories, but it worked wonderfully for this story. Hope you agree, hope you enjoyed the alternate ending, and hope you have a great holiday

Ja Mata

Zentrodie


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